March of Dimes Delivers Cribs, Soap, Diapers, Vitamins and More to Mothers and Babies in Gulf Coast

March of Dimes Delivers Cribs, Soap, Diapers, Vitamins and More to Mothers and Babies in Gulf Coast

Greg Gumbel Leads Effort to Raise $5 Million for Hurricane Relief

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y., Jan. 26 /PRNewswire/ -- The March of Dimes is providing $75,000 worth of supplies urgently needed by Gulf Coast women and their babies displaced by the recent hurricane season and its aftermath through contributions to its Hurricane Relief Fund chaired by CBS sportscaster Greg Gumbel.

Baby soap, breast pumps, diapers, maternity clothes, winter clothes for premature babies, cribs, strollers, formula and many other basic items for hundreds of pregnant women and children will be delivered to Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi and Texas by FedEx, a March of Dimes corporate sponsor.

These supplies will be picked up at 9606 Cortana Pl., Baton Rouge at 10:30 a.m. Central Time and delivered to March of Dimes offices in Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Alexandria, West Monroe and Shreveport, where they will be distributed as needed.

FedEx also donated delivery of a tractor trailer-load of baby supplies for the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals at the request of the March of Dimes. These items were sent to Alexandria where they will be distributed as needed by the state's Injury Prevention Coordinator.

But much more help will be needed over the next few years to ensure that pregnant women and babies are able to obtain health care, said Gumbel, a member of the March of Dimes Board of Trustees since 1995

"I was born in New Orleans and it holds special meaning for me. That's why I'm proud to help the March of Dimes bring hope to the Gulf Coast in the aftermath of the hurricanes," said Gumbel.

"We've set a goal of raising $5 million. Our dream is to build and deploy mobile medical units - Mama and Baby Buses - that will bring prenatal care to pregnant women and babies wherever they are," Gumbel said.

The March of Dimes also has received a $500,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health to help meet the long-term needs of women and babies in the Gulf Coast area.

Despite the number of women and children being helped, the need is much greater, the March of Dimes says. The organization is working closely with area hospitals and other community organizations to identify more of those in need.

Ther-Rx Corporation, a subsidiary of KV Pharmaceutical Company, donated 500,000 prescription prenatal vitamins and delivered them to health clinics in Baton Rouge, River Ridge, Metairie and Zachary, Louisiana and in Gulfport, Mississippi. The vitamins will be distributed to pregnant women and women of childbearing age who were displaced or otherwise affected by Hurricane Katrina.

The March of Dimes says that although it's not a disaster relief organization, it decided to provide special services to the Gulf Coast because of the health threats faced by women and babies following the hurricanes. Preterm birth rates in Louisiana have long been above the national average, and they are expected to increase substantially over the next six months.

Nationwide, 12.5 percent of all babies were born too soon in 2004, an increase of more than 30 percent since 1981, when the government first began tracking prematurity.

The March of Dimes is a national voluntary health agency whose mission is to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects, premature birth, and infant mortality. Founded in 1938, the March of Dimes funds programs of research, community services, education, and advocacy to save babies and in 2003 launched a campaign to address the increasing rate of premature birth.

For more information, or to donate to the Hurricane Relief Fund, visit the March of Dimes Web site at http://www.marchofdimes.com/dream or its Spanish language Web site at http://www.nacersano.org/.

Source: March of Dimes

CONTACT: Todd P. Dezen, +1-914-997-4608, tdezen@marchofdimes.com, or
Elizabeth Lynch, +1-914-997-4286, elynch@marchofdimes.com, or Robert Storace,
+1-914-997-4622, rstorace@marchofdimes.com; or Louisiana State Chapter,
+1-225-295-0655, State Director Memrie McDonald, Director of Program Services
Capi Landreneau, all for March of Dimes

Web site: http://www.marchofdimes.com/
http://www.nacersano.org/

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