Help Save Healthy Start!

What is Healthy Start?  

Launched in 1991, Healthy Start is a federally funded, community-driven program focused on improving birth outcomes and reducing disparities. Operated by the Health Resources and Services Administration’s (HRSA) Maternal and Child Health Bureau, Healthy Start supports over 85,000 families annually through funding a network of community-based programs designed to reduce maternal and infant mortality, ensure healthy outcomes during the first year of life, and support at-risk pregnant and postpartum women. Healthy Start is a proven, evidence-based model that has measurable results.  

Healthy Start is a discretionary program within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and receives its annual funding through the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (LHHS) Appropriations Subcommittees in the House and Senate.  

On May 10, 2025, the President proposed eliminating all funding for Healthy Start in the FY2026 Budget, citing it as duplicative.  

MCC and Healthy Start 

MCC is a Healthy Start provider for parents and babies across Philadelphia County. This program facilitates our Fatherhood Initiative, parenting groups, and home visiting services. MCC’s Healthy Start services are one of several factors contributing to a significant decrease in infant deaths and infant mortality in MCC’s 15-zip code project area over the last six years. Using verifiable 3-year average data, the infant mortality rate decreased from 8.87 deaths per 1,000 live births (2013 – 2015) to 6.40 deaths per 1,000 live births (2019 – 2021), a reduction of 27.4%.

Why does Healthy Start matter?  

🍼 The U.S. has the highest infant mortality rate of any high-income nation.  

🏥 Healthy Start serves communities where that risk is at least 50% higher than the national average.  

🌍 Infant mortality in the United States costs the nation an estimated $12 billion annually, driven by high medical expenses and lost productivity. However, the non-financial costs—including parental mental health challenges and long-term workforce impacts—are equally significant.  

How to Help Save Healthy Start:

Multiple strategies will form a powerful, coordinated push to protect the funding needed to sustain Healthy Start programs nationwide. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, Rep. Gwen S. Moore, and PA's very own Rep. Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick, have co-sponsored the reauthorization of Healthy Start.  

Thanks to incredible, nationwide advocacy, the Senate Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education (LHHS) Appropriations Committee voted to include Healthy Start at full funding in their FY2026 bill. Now we need the House LHHS Committee to follow suit.