Rep. Lett Announces $2M in Funding to Expand Infant Mortality Prevention Programs Across Ohio

COLUMBUS - State Rep. Crystal Lett (D-Columbus) today announced that the Ohio Controlling Board approved $2M in funding for the second year of a three-year expansion of the Queens Village and Cradle Cincinnati model, programs designed to combat infant mortality and support mothers and families across Ohio.

"As ranking member of the House Children and Human Services Committee, I am proud to see this funding expand these programs into communities like Franklin County, where the need is urgent. Ohio's children and families thrive when we strengthen community resources, listen to the mothers, and provide the tools they need to succeed. This investment shows what we can achieve when we put families first and work together to build healthier futures," said Rep. Lett.

Ohio continues to have a high infant mortality rate. The Cradle Cincinnati Collective Impact Model is a cross-sector network of partners working collaboratively to improve infant mortality rates and eliminate differences in outcomes for mothers and babies. This model gathers the community together to address infant mortality by transforming systems, supporting families, and elevating women's voices. Cradle Cincinnati will provide individualized training to four communities with the highest rates of infant mortality (Franklin, Lucas, Cuyahoga, and Montgomery counties) on interpreting causes of infant death. Cradle Cincinnati will also lead a collective impact workshop and provide tools to help each grantee build a tailored, community-specific collective impact model. The four grant recipients are the Hospital Council of NW Ohio (Lucas), Celebrate One (Franklin), Nationwide (Montgomery), and First Year CLE (Cuyahoga).

Queens Village is a nationally recognized model for engaging Black women in maternal and child health efforts that creates an infrastructure for community leaders to serve as an advisory to local maternal and child health efforts. This strategy will provide training, skill-building, and technical assistance in eight Maternal and Infant Vitality Initiative communities with the greatest differences in birth outcomes (Butler, Cuyahoga, Franklin, Lorain, Lucas, Mahoning, Montgomery and Summit counties).