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For over three years, Caitlin and Jake Miles of Biloxi have poured everything they have into starting a family.

Their journey has been complex and emotional — including two surgeries and multiple fertility treatments, all while Jake, a member of the United States Navy, traveled thousands of miles away on deployments.

As the bills pile up and negative results take their toll, the journey to motherhood for women and families who undergo fertility treatment can be hard. Recognizing this, a national grant was developed to offset the cost of one cycle of IVF for five women — including Caitlin.

“It was almost to that point where we were wanting to give up,” Jake said. “The financial struggle of doing it the last time, having enough time to save up and raise the money again. Then going through all the pain, and all the stuff that she has to go through to get ready for the procedure — having this grant flipped our whole outlook 180 degrees and for the better.” 

The grant is the result of a partnership between The Wyatt Foundation and The Conceive Foundation to provide $15,000 grants to five couples nationally who are in need of IVF to grow their families. The Wyatt Foundation is the nonprofit arm of Inception Fertility, a fertility care company. The Conceive Foundation is the nonprofit arm of Caden Lane, a company that sells apparel and accessories for newborns. 

Caitlin and Jake Miles share a home near the marshes of Biloxi. They got married in February 2021, and after unsuccessful attempts at starting a family, the couple discovered Caitlin had uterine fibroids — non-cancerous tumors that grow on the womb. Black women and those with a family history of uterine fibroids are at the highest risk of developing them, according to the Mayo Clinic. 

“My mom had them, my grandmother, my aunts — we’ve all had them. I didn’t know up until that point that I had them, though,” she said. “I went and had surgery and got what I thought was all of them removed. We tried again, were unsuccessful, and then he deployed.” 

Jake Miles, a Navy first class petty officer, is periodically deployed to locations around the world for months at a time. 

“Very stressful would be the best way of describing it,” he said. “Being deployed, while we’re doing it, being on the other side of the planet for six months, with an 8 hour or 12 hour time difference — it’s hard.” 

After seeking out a different medical provider, Caitlin’s suspicions were confirmed: despite undergoing major surgery to have the uterine fibroids removed, she had more of them. She underwent surgery again and healed, but attempts at conceiving naturally continued to be unsuccessful for the couple. 

They turned to IUI, or intrauterine insemination which, too, was unsuccessful. Caitlin found out their last round of IUI didn’t take just as Jake was deploying again in February 2023. From there, after discussions with Caitlin’s doctor, the couple decided that the next step would be a cycle of IVF.

“I went into it (IVF treatment) with the opinion of, ‘This is going to work.’ Unfortunately, it didn’t. And that was very hard for both of us,” she said. 

IVF is a process where eggs, collected from the ovaries, are fertilized outside of the body and then placed in the uterus. According to the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, the average cost of one cycle of IVF is $15,000. Despite Caitlin working in health care and Jake being an active member of the U.S. Military, neither have insurance that covers more than a small portion of the costs associated with their fertility treatments.

An estimated 2.1% of babies born every year are conceived using some form of assisted reproductive technology like IVF, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Age is an important determinant of whether or not an IVF cycle will be successful. For patients younger than 35, 42.6% of assisted reproductive technology cycles are successful. For patients over 40, that falls to 28%, the CDC estimates.  

“We were taking time to heal and see how we are going to proceed forward. And then the grant fell in our laps” after a friend texted her the application, Caitlin said. 

“She knew that I’ve been struggling and thought in the kindness of her heart to send me the link, knowing that we were at a standstill for what we were going to do,” she said. “I applied and here we are.”

Applicants had to verify that they had “unexplained infertility” and submit a video detailing their fertility journey. Caitlin filmed hers in her car on a busy day before heading into work — “raw and real.” From a pool of more than 1,000 applicants, she was one of the five recipients selected. 

“It’s been a huge positive impact,” Jake said. 

Dr. John Preston Parry is the founder of Positive Steps Fertility, a fertility clinic in Madison with locations across Mississippi and Louisiana. Positive Steps specializes in fertility testing and treatment. 

“When people are getting IVF, they’ve been trying everything short of IVF to get a family,” Parry said. “If they could get spontaneously pregnant, they wouldn’t bother their time with a fertility specialist. (There are) low cost, low tech measures — we’re about $500-600 a month for oral medication and insemination. If you could get pregnant with that, why would you get a $20,000 solution like IVF? Most people wouldn’t. So it’s really that they’ve done everything else.” 

The Miles couple was faced with more uncertainty earlier this year when access to IVF was threatened in Alabama after the state’s supreme court ruled that frozen embryos could be considered children. The decision had a ripple effect, and IVF became a national talking point.

“I remember coming home and asking Jake like … what is happening? I didn’t know how to react except for like ‘This could be ripped away from us. This could be the only way that we could get pregnant and it’s being ripped away from us,’ said Caitlin. “It was a very scary time to know that something that has brought so many babies to people’s families could be nonexistent.”

Many politicians came out in support of ensuring IVF remained legal and accessible, but some leaders in Mississippi have blocked efforts to protect access to IVF. U.S. Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith who blocked federal legislation that aimed to protect IVF, and Mississippi Agriculture Commissioner Andy Gipson likened a bill that would protect access to IVF in Mississippi to “backdoor abortions” and “cloning.”

“It is a time of vulnerability for fertility patients across the US. And I think particularly here in the Deep South. And I also think there are many people who say they are deliberately coming after IVF and fertility. Which is sad, because most women and most people want to respect and protect those who love children and who want families,” Parry said. “So, it’s concerning that judges and legislators will act against the interests of their constituents, as well as the good of the state. Because helping families is important.”

The grant has lit the way for the couple’s fertility journey. Still, the process has not been without difficulty. 

“It’s just hard because usually I like to be the person that can fix problems for her. Having to stand there and just be supportive and help where I could, but not being able to actually do something about it — that was the hard part,” Jake said.

As others in Caitlin’s life are having children, she shared that while she is happy for them, it’s tough not to ask: why not me?

“I’ve always known that I’ve wanted to be a wife and a mom and the fact that we’re both about to turn 35 in the next few weeks — not having a child has been hard. This isn’t what I ever expected of my life,” Caitlin said. “I have an amazing husband and I’m just like — why hasn’t this happened for us? I’ve got so much motherly love to give and I’m just like … is it going to happen for me, you know?”

Parry emphasized the importance of research when navigating infertility. Both on the front end, when deciding which clinicians are the best for your circumstance, and after the fact: if IVF or other reproductive technology is unsuccessful, a thorough investigation into why matters. 

According to the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, 91,771 babies were born in 2022 with the help of Assisted Reproductive Technology.

Caitlin and Jake will begin their IVF cycle with the support of the grant in August.

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A joint effort to seal filings in the case against a former Ole Miss student accused of slaying Jimmie “Jay” Lee is very unusual, a legal expert told Mississippi Today. 

The petition states that due to “significant” media coverage, the only way Sheldon Timothy Herrington Jr.’s right to a fair trial will be secured is if the judge agrees to seal all pretrial documents, including docket entries, motions, exhibits, subpoenas and notices. It was first reported by the Oxford Eagle. 

Lafayette County District Attorney Ben Creekmore and Herrington’s attorney, Rep. Kevin Horan, filed the motion together. 

It is unusual to see prosecutors partnering with the defense to seal cases, said Mississippi College School of Law professor Matthew Steffey, because they work on behalf of the public in lieu of more archaic forms of vigilante or community justice. Therefore, the public has a right to know what the district attorney is doing on its behalf. 

Plus, Steffey noted that defendants in Mississippi have a constitutional right not just to a speedy trial, but also to a public one. Herrington’s family, who is from Grenada, has maintained his innocence in interviews with news outlets, and dozens of people, including powerful local officials, have written letters to the court on Herrington’s behalf.

“It is not simply in our legal tradition to hold criminal trials in secret,” said Matthew Steffey, a Mississippi College law professor. “You make it secret enough, then it’s a ‘star chamber,’ albeit with jurors.” 

So far, the case has been handled by Lafayette County Circuit Court Judge Gray Tollison.

The joint motion comes little over a month after Horan filed his own motion seeking a change in venue.

Also citing the media attention Herrington’s case has received, Horan’s motion argued that Herrington could not receive a fair trial in Lafayette County. He attached articles from multiple news outlets as well as screenshots of social media activity from Justice for Jay Lee, a group organized by Lee’s friends that has held protests outside the courthouse and called on police to find Lee’s body.

A ruling has yet to be made on either motion, but Horan has been successful in negotiating on behalf of Herrington in the past. A few months after Herrington was denied bond, Horan and the district attorney’s office came to an agreement that set bail, and Herrington was released.

Steffey said that judges very rarely grant change-of-venue motions, in part because the internet allows news to easily spread beyond specific communities. 

“Changing venues doesn’t put the trial on the moon,” he said. 

It’s one thing, Steffey added, for judges to seal specifics in a case in order to protect a police investigation or the names of witnesses. In Derek Chauvin’s trial, for example, the judge ordered the jury remain anonymous to preserve the officer’s right to a fair trial.

“But everything so that nobody has any kind of knowledge of the conduct of the case?” Steffey asked. “Do they intend to call and pick a jury in secret?” 

Lee, a well-known member of Oxford’s LGBTQ+ community, went missing on July 8, 2022. 

Herrington was arrested two weeks later. Police later determined that he had been in a sexual relationship with Lee and that his apartment was the last place Lee went. That night, a few minutes after Lee messaged that he was coming over, Herrington Googled “how long does it take to strangle someone gabby petito,” then “does pre workout boost testosterone.” 

The theory of the case that prosecution presented during an earlier preliminary hearing is that Herrington killed Lee to keep their casual sexual relationship a secret — something Herrington’s defense attorney deemed “sensational.”  

The Oxford Eagle reported that while Herrington’s trial is set for October, court officials said the date is expected to be pushed to December, after the height of football season, considering the lack of hotels and the possibility that jurors will be brought in from surrounding areas.

The post ‘Star chamber’: Joint motion seeks to seal Tim Herrington’s capital murder case  appeared first on Mississippi Today.

Not many people would have done what Joe Biden just did. He came to the conclusion, with a lot of help after a terrible few weeks, that he was not the best choice to defeat Donald Trump and stepped aside. He put the country first. And history will note this day.

Now things get interesting.

The post Marshall Ramsey: You First appeared first on Mississippi Today.

Editor’s note: This story is breaking and developing. It will be updated.

President Joe Biden announced on Sunday afternoon he would not seek reelection in November 2024 and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris.

Biden’s historic decision followed weeks of pressure from fellow Democrats who feared the president could not defeat former President Donald Trump in November and would drag down congressional Democratic candidates across the nation.

“It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your president,” Biden wrote on social media on Sunday. “And while it has been my intention to seek re-election, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and focus entirely on fulfilling my duties as president for the remainder of my term.”

Many prominent Democrats for weeks publicly expressed concern that Biden, after a late June debate performance, appeared to have lost mental acuity over the past four years and wasn’t up for another term. Post-debate polling showed that Biden slipped in key swing states — even in states where Democratic congressional candidates still ran ahead of Republican challengers.

Biden and his top campaign aides publicly insisted he would resist the pressure and stay in the race. But the post-debate pressure grew by the day, culminating in Biden’s withdrawal announcement on Sunday.

Harris, a former top prosecutor in California, notably landed Biden’s immediate endorsement. Many Democrats and pundits have questioned whether Harris would be endorsed by Biden or whether the Democratic Party would open up their August convention to multiple candidates.

Regardless, the 2024 election will mark the first time in 56 years that a major U.S. political party will nominate a candidate who did not run for president in primary elections.

“Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year,” Biden posted to social media. “Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump. Let’s do this.”

Politicians in Mississippi and around the nation immediately took to social media to respond to Biden’s historic announcement or made statements about it Sunday.

State Rep. Robert Johnson, D-Natchez, House Democratic leader and Democratic National Convention delegate: “President Biden has demonstrated he is more interested in doing what is best for the county than for himself.” Johnson said he will support the new nominee, which is crucial because Trump poses a threat to democracy. He said he believes Harris is ready to serve as president, otherwise Biden would not have chosen her as his running mate.

State Sen. David Blount, D-Jackson, a delegate to the convention who will be on the Democratic National Committee for the next four-year term: “History will remember Joe Biden as a successful president who always put his country first,” Blount said. “President Biden restored decency and statesmanship to our country. He stood up to Russia and those who sought to overthrow an election with violence.

“All Mississippians who will enjoy better highways, improved water/sewer systems and high speed internet should thank President Biden for what he did for our state. Our party will leave the convention united and ready to win in November.”

The post President Biden drops out of 2024 race, endorses Vice President Kamala Harris appeared first on Mississippi Today.

A federal judge has temporarily excused seven universities and community colleges in Mississippi from complying with the Biden Administration’s revised Title IX rule that expanded protections for LGBTQ+ and pregnant and parenting students. 

The state of Mississippi has been exempt from the new rule, which is set to take effect Aug. 1, since it worked with several Republican states earlier this year to successfully obtain a temporary injunction. 

But now, seven colleges and universities in Mississippi, including the University of Mississippi and Mississippi College, will be subject to an additional injunction following a Kansas judge’s ruling on what one expert called a “clever legal gambit,” because it applied to any campus that has one of three conservative education groups.

In that case, Kansas sued to block the new rule along with three conservative education groups, including Young America’s Foundation and Moms for Liberty. The judge’s temporary injunction was broadened beyond Kansas to any school, college or university campus where those organizations have a chapter — all told, more than 670 institutions across the country, according to Inside Higher Ed. 

The Biden Administration is seeking to contest the ruling, Inside Higher Ed reported.

The seven universities and colleges in Mississippi with chapters of those three groups are Holmes Community College, Pearl River Community College, Millsaps College, Mississippi College, Mississippi State University, University of Mississippi and University of Southern Mississippi, according to court filings.

Through university websites, Mississippi Today confirmed there are Young Americans for Freedom chapters at MSU and Ole Miss. 

Officials in some conservatives states vowed to defy the new Title IX rules shortly after they were announced, citing state laws banning trans athletes from playing on sports teams that align with their gender identity. Mississippi passed such a ban in 2021.

In Mississippi, USM “has not received any guidance on this issue from any outside state entity,” a university spokesperson, Brittney Westbrook, wrote in an email.

“Preparations have been made to comply with the revised policies should the temporary injunction be dissolved,” she wrote.

Sid Salter, the vice president for strategic communications at MSU, wrote in an email that the university is waiting for guidance from federal and state officials and the courts before implementing any Title IX changes.

“Our consistent set point as a university is to fully comply with federal and state policies when those policies have been clearly established and shared with us,” Salter wrote.

Ole Miss had intended to revise its Title IX policies this summer but had suspended the plans when last month’s injunction was issued, wrote Jacob Batte, the university’s director of news and media relations, in an email.

Last year, Young Americans for Freedom threatened to sue Ole Miss, alleging the university was violating its members’ free speech rights after officials claimed YAF had held an unauthorized event in the Grove.

The chapter had constructed, then torn down, a mock Berlin Wall that was spraypainted with the words “safe spaces,” “microaggressions,” “Taiwan #1” and “chicken.”

The post Judge exempts 7 Mississippi universities from revised Title IX rule appeared first on Mississippi Today.

Before the sun reaches its searing height in the day, Chris Lockhart, 33, owner and operator of Capital City Kayakers, is out at Crystal Lake in Flowood, unloading kayaks and other gear from his colorful bus in preparation for a group he and friend Justin Henderson will guide in and around the oxbow lake.

Lockhart and Henderson begin by wiping down every piece of equipment with disinfectant — kayaks, life jackets and paddles. Excitement is in the air, and Lockhart is all smiles in anticipation of the arrival of his morning adventurers.

The air is warm, but not oppressive, and filled with birds singing, the endless screech of cicadas and the distant hum of occasional traffic along U.S. 80 and Flowood Drive.

“I started Capital City Kayaks around 2014, after I graduated from Mississippi State and I moved back to Jackson,” said Lockhart. “I had a kayak and so I’d go to different spots around the area. I really love being outdoors. I was one of those kids, ya know, who was always out exploring, riding my bike and I actually loved going to summer camp. Summer camp is where I had my first kayaking experience. I was hooked.”

The morning’s group consists of nine paddlers, varying in experience and ages. There’s chatter and laughter as everyone grabs a paddle, a life jacket, and chooses a kayak. Lockhart assembles everyone for a safety check and paddling tips.

Once on the water, one inexperienced kayaker admits to not being a very good swimmer and asks, “What happens if I tip this thing over?”

Knowing a demonstration was more believable than words, Lockhart scoots up and out of his kayak and into the water, saying, “Just stand up! The water isn’t very deep.”

The inexperienced kayaker is tickled, her nerves calmed as she paddles away with more confidence.

“People began asking me about my dip spots,” said Lockhart. “I’d mention the Rez, Mayes Lake at LeFleur’s Bluff and here at Crystal Lake, and they’re thinking I’m out of state. I’d laugh and say, no, I’m just down the street. Even my home boys wanted to join me, and I thought, yeah, that’s cool. I’ll just buy one extra boat. And you know what? A lot of people started to express interest. So I sat down one day and decided to crunch some numbers.”

“That number crunching turned into seven kayaks I used to haul around in my ’86 El Camino. As business started to grow, I went from my El Camino to a pickup truck. Now I have three buses and a couple of guys that work with me.”

“Primarily, a lot of my business are Black females. I’d say about 70% are, and they tend to bring family members, friends and partners. Being in Mississippi, especially central Mississippi and in a metropolitan area like Jackson, a lot of us can’t swim. And that’s the biggest fear that can keep people away.” 

“Many are like, “Now look, I’m about to get in this little boat in this deep water out here with all this wildlife. Who’s going to save me?” Or it’s their apprehension that they are in a little boat in this water by themselves. So one thing I like to offer is peace of mind, knowing there’s somebody out here with you. That you don’t have to worry about all the extra variables like rough waters or unsuitable conditions. I’m here with folks every step of the way from when they check in to getting them in the boat and pointing out nature.”

“I’m letting them know that, hey, you have reassurance that there’s nothing that’s going to happen to you. That your drive over here was more dangerous than what you’re about to do on this water. Out here, it’s calm, peaceful.”

“Out here on Crystal Lake is a hidden gem, a stone’s throw from downtown Jackson, not somewhere where you have to drive miles away or go to another state. And that’s a beautiful thing. So come on out, y’all. Let’s explore.”

Book your paddling adventure with Capital City Kayaks by contacting:

www.CapitalCityKayaks.com
capitalcitykayaks@gmail.com
(601) 953-7615

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Mississippi can continue to impose a lifetime ban on voting for people convicted of certain felonies, including some non-violent felonies, the full panel of the U.S. 5^th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Thursday.

The opinion of the full panel reverses an August 2023 ruling by a three-judge panel of the 5^th Circuit finding the lifetime ban unconstitutional because it inflicted cruel and unusual punishment.

The full panel said a lifetime ban on voting was not punishment, but “served as a nonpenal, regulatory purpose.”

The majority opinion was written by Edith Jones, an appointee of Republican Ronald Reagan in the 1980s. She was joined by 12 members of the Court in finding that the section of the Mississippi Constitution imposing the lifetime ban was not in violation of the U.S. Constitution. Two of those 12, including one Democratic appointee, Irma Ramirez, agreed with the results, but did not sign on to Jones’ opinion.

Six members of the Court, all Democratic appointees, said Mississippi’s lifetime ban unconstitutional. Their dissenting opinion was written by James L. Dennis.

“Voting is the lifeblood of our democracy and the deprivation of the right to vote saps citizens of the ability to have a say in how and by whom they are governed,” Dennis wrote. “Permanent denial of the franchise, then, is an exceptionally severe penalty, constituting nothing short of the denial of the democratic core of American citizenship.”

But the majority said the framers of the Constitution in banning cruel and unusual punishment were looking to ensure laws were not passed permitting  punishment “such as gibbeting (hanging), burning at the stake, embowelling, beheading and quartering.”

Jones wrote that those wishing to end Mississippi’s lifetime voting ban for people convicted of certain felonies should “do the hard work of persuading your fellow citizens the law should be changed.”

If the lifetime ban is repealed it should be done by the Legislature and “not by judicial fiat,” she wrote.

READ MORE: Senate has little appetite for changing the difficult way it restores suffrage to convicted felons

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled in past cases that a lifetime ban on voting for people convicted of certain felonies was not unconstitutional. But a minority of the 5^th Circuit pointed out that the Supreme Court in past instances has changed its mind and found certain punishments, such as the execution of minors, cruel and unusual punishment after states began to ban such action.

When the Supreme Court found a lifetime ban on voting constitutional, 27 states imposed such punishments, Dennis wrote. But now, he pointed out 39 states did not impose such a ban. Mississippi is one of only two states, Dennis wrote for the minority, to impose a lifetime ban for people convicted for the first time of non-violent felonies.

It is likely the 5^th Circuit ruling will be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The lawsuit was filed by the Southern Poverty Law Center, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP and others on behalf of Mississippians who have lost their voting rights. The office of Attorney General Lynn Fitch opposed the lawsuit on behalf of the state.

The framers at the time admitted they placed the lifetime ban in the Mississippi Constitution as a tool to keep Black people from voting. Those crimes placed in the Constitution for the ban are bribery, theft, arson, obtaining money or goods under false pretense, perjury, forgery, embezzlement, bigamy and burglary.

Under the original language of the constitution, a person could be convicted of cattle rustling and lose the right to vote, but those convicted of murder or rape would still be able to vote — even while incarcerated. Murder and rape have since been added as disenfranchising offenses.

The lifetime ban was challenged in an earlier lawsuit on the grounds it was imposed to deny the vote to Black Mississippians. The 5^th Circuit rejected that argument and the Supreme Court refused to hear the case.

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The Mississippi Legislature must adopt new state Senate and House maps with Black-majority districts during its 2025 session and conduct elections to fill those new seats, a federal three-judge panel ruled on Thursday. 

The judges previously ruled in a lawsuit filed on behalf of the Mississippi Conference of the NAACP and Black voters from across the state that the districts that were drawn in 2022 by the state Legislature diluted Black voting strength.

After its ruling, the panel invited the plaintiffs and state officials to submit briefings on whether the state should adopt new maps this year and conduct special elections in November to fill those seats. 

The NAACP argued that special elections should take place in November, while the defendant, the all-Republican State Board of Election Commissioners, argued the elections should take place next year because it would be nearly impossible to redraw the districts in time for November elections. 

This would also have required lawmakers to return to Jackson in a special session this year to draw and approve new districts.

“The equitable weighing process we must use when selecting the proper remedy for Voting Rights Act violations leads us to conclude that the Mississippi Legislature need not act until its regular 2025 session,” the judges wrote in a unanimous opinion. “Because there are no general, statewide elections in 2025, the Mississippi Legislature must also determine the most appropriate dates in 2025 for elections in the affected districts.”

READ MORE: Federal judges order Mississippi Legislature to create more Black districts, may prompt 2024 elections

Rob McDuff, an attorney with the Mississippi Center for Justice, represented the plaintiffs in the litigation. He told Mississippi Today in a statement that he would have preferred the special elections be held in 2024, but he understood the Court’s reasons for waiting until 2025.

“The Legislature should promptly comply with the Voting Rights Act and adopt plans that are in line with the districts that the court approved as reasonable in its decision,” McDuff said. “We will continue advocating for Black Mississippians in this process until a complete remedy is in place.”

The panel is composed of U.S. District Judge Sul Ozerden, Chief U.S. District Judge Daniel Jordan and U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Leslie Southwick. President George W. Bush appointed all three Mississippi judges to the federal bench. 

The State Board of Election Commissioners, composed of Republicans Attorney General Lynn Fitch, Gov. Tate Reeves and Secretary of State Michael Watson, could appeal the ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The state has a Black population of about 38%. Currently there are 42-Black majority districts in the 122-member House and 15 Black majority districts in the 52-seat Senate.

The panel ruled earlier this month that Black-majority Senate districts should be drawn at least in the DeSoto County area in north Mississippi and in the Hattiesburg area in south Mississippi. In addition, a new Black majority House district should be drawn in the Chickasaw County area in northeast Mississippi.

However, the Legislature will still have to tweak many districts in the state to accommodate for the new Black-majority maps. Defendants had argued that the redrawing would affect a quarter of the state’s 174 legislative districts and require new elections.

State legislative leaders did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday on the new ruling.

Update: This story has been updated with comments from Rob McDuff, an attorney with the Mississippi Center for Justice.

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Mississippi ranks last in women’s health and reproductive care outcomes, according to a 2024 report released Thursday by the Commonwealth Fund, a nonprofit dedicated to independent research on health policy. 

The study’s authors pointed to the state’s lack of Medicaid expansion and strict abortion ban as two major causes. 

The report, which evaluates states on health care access, affordability, quality of care and health outcomes, found “mounting disparities in women’s health and reproductive care across the United States,” with Mississippi, Texas, Nevada, Oklahoma and Arkansas scoring the worst overall. 

By contrast, Massachusetts, Vermont, Rhode Island, Connecticut and New Hampshire scored the highest. 

“This scorecard yet again reminds us that where you live matters to your health and health care,” said Dr. Joseph Betancourt, Commonwealth Fund president, in a press release. “While some states are championing women’s continued access to vital health and reproductive services, many others are failing to ensure women can get and afford the health care they need. And this failure is having a disproportionate impact on women of color and women with low incomes.”

The national maternal mortality rate nearly doubled between 2018 and 2021, rising from 17.4 to 32.9 deaths per 100,000 live births, with the highest spikes among Black and American Indian and Alaska Native women. In 2022, that rate went down to 22.3, according to the report. 

Mental health and cardiovascular problems were the leading underlying causes of maternal death – which was most prevalent in the Mississippi Delta, including Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Tennessee, where maternity care deserts – areas with no hospital offering labor and delivery and no practicing OB-GYNs – pervade counties. 

Southeastern states had the highest rates of deaths among women of reproductive age from 15 to 44 in addition to having the highest rates of maternal deaths. The study said top causes of death included preventable factors such as pregnancy complications, substance use, COVID-19, and breast or cervical cancer.

In June 2022, Jackson was at the center of the historic U.S. Supreme Court ruling that abolished the constitutional right to an abortion. This decision had a profound impact on the state of women’s health care, researchers found – not only in what services are offered to women, but also how pregnant women access care. 

“Many experts are concerned that abortion bans or limits may inadvertently reduce the number of providers offering maternity care, owing to increased risk of legal action that practices face,” the study read. 

Other studies have shown that the number of medical residency applications has declined more in states with bans than those without. 

Turning Mississippi’s health metrics around will be “very difficult” to do, authors of the report said in a media briefing Wednesday, without changing the larger, politically divisive policies. The authors referenced abortion access and Medicaid expansion as two of those policy issues.

“There are things delivery systems can do despite the policy choices Mississippi has made, but it is hard to do without the additional, in large part, resources – including Medicaid which would bring an influx of resources into the state were it to expand,” explained Sara Collins, the study’s lead author.

Mississippi is one of only 10 states not to expand Medicaid in the decade since the Affordable Care Act made it an option for states. This year, the Legislature came close to passing a version of the policy, which would have expanded income eligibility for Medicaid and provided health care to tens of thousands of Mississippians. The bill died in the last week of the legislative session after a saga of partisan politics. 

Last week, Mississippi Today unveiled a digital tracker reflecting how much federal money the state has turned down since July 1 – the date expansion likely would have gone into effect had it been passed. On Thursday, that number was $97 million. 

Mississippi scored well on the number of women insured during pregnancy, since Medicaid eligibility is significantly more inclusive for pregnant women. Federal law mandates all Medicaid programs cover pregnant women whose household income is less than 138% of the federal poverty level. But states can increase that eligibility, and Mississippi covers pregnant women making up to 194% of the federal poverty level, which is about $29,000 annually for an individual.

Collins referenced preventative measures such as screenings for postpartum depression and breast and cervical cancer as one way to affect change at the local level in spite of state politics.

While southeastern and northeastern states differed on most measures, both areas had high rates of cesarean sections among low-risk pregnancies – which the study says is a “key indicator of lower-quality maternal health care.”

In the Northeast – particularly in New York and Connecticut, which had the worst rates in their region – that could be due to individual hospitals not having a “culture of care” supporting vaginal delivery. For example, turning to interventions too quickly, simply because they are available or efficient. 

Low-risk cesareans are more common in women who are admitted to hospitals during the week, which the study said “may reflect scheduling preferences.”

Mississippi also ranked in the top five in an increase in syphilis cases among women of reproductive age, with the highest rates found in South Dakota, New Mexico, Mississippi, Arkansas and Oklahoma. 

The State Health Department last year began requiring medical providers to test pregnant women for syphilis after the state saw an alarming increase in babies born with the disease. 

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