Congress funds stillbirth research and data collection to improve maternal health outcomes.
S. 2858 — SHINE for Autumn Act of 2025 · Filed by Cory Booker (D-NJ) · 41 cosponsors · Introduced Sep 18, 2025 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill authorizes $5 million per year (2026–2030) for states to conduct surveillance, collect data, and study stillbirths using existing datasets and new reporting; and $1 million per year for the federal government to issue standardized guidelines and develop public educational materials on stillbirth risk factors. All data must be deidentified and comply with privacy law. The bill requires HHS to publish a public report on stillbirth guidelines within five years.
Why we flagged it
The bill's operative mechanism is straightforward: federal grants to states for stillbirth surveillance and data collection, plus HHS guidelines and educational materials. It is a standard public health research authorization with no deregulation, liability shields, or private carve-outs.
What the text implies
- Standardized stillbirth data collection may reveal disparities in stillbirth rates across racial, socioeconomic, or geographic groups, potentially creating pressure for targeted interventions or policy changes.
- Privacy-protected data aggregation could enable epidemiological research linking stillbirth to environmental, occupational, or clinical factors, with implications for workplace safety, product liability, or clinical practice standards.
The full analysis lists 3 implications of this text.
Who stands to gain
state health departments; vital statistics units; public health research institutions