New Louisiana health initiative aims to address maternal overdose mortality crisis
BATON ROUGE, La. (Louisiana First) — A new project called Project M.O.M. launched within the Louisiana Department of Health seeks to reduce maternal overdose death rates.
The initiative was announced on April 21 among several other health initiatives outlined by newly reappointed LDH Secretary Bruce Greenstein. He said Project M.O.M. aims to reduce opioid overdose deaths in expecting mothers by 80% in the next three years.
'Accidental opioid overdose has been the leading cause of pregnancy-associated death in Louisiana since 2018, and this is a statewide effort to reverse that terrible trend,' Deputy Secretary Dr. Pete Croughan said. 'Every preventable death is a tragedy, but the death of a pregnant woman or young mom doubles the tragedy, as the loss of the mother endangers her child.'
Objectives of the program include increasing substance use screening, improving access to care, connecting hospital and emergency department encounters to rapid outpatient treatment, and increasing accessibility to naloxone, a medicine used to reverse opioid overdoses.
LDH said five birthing hospitals participated in the Louisiana Perinatal Quality Collaborative's Naloxone Pilot Project in 2024, which resulted in nearly 100 moms leaving the hospital with a lifesaving opioid referral agent.
Baton Rouge's Woman's Hospital has a program helping those with addiction. The free Guiding Recovery and Creating Empowerment (GRACE) Program provides resources to mothers before and after birth.
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Carrie Templeton was named director of the program. According to LDH, she previously held executive roles at Our Lady of Lourdes Regional Medical Center, Lafayette General Surgical Hospital, Iberia Medical Center, and Lafayette General Health.
'Carrie's leadership in women and children's health, together with her passion for improving care coordination, make her a great fit to lead Project M.O.M. She has the skill set and capabilities needed to bring together many existing efforts and align them in a way that improves access to care,' Greenstein said.
LDH said Templeton will work with hospital and community partners to develop an implementation plan to track data and performance in the next 90 days. Greenstein said hospitals and providers have expressed excitement about the initiative.
'I am very excited about the vision for Project M.O.M. By improving access and care for pregnant women with substance use disorders (SUDs), we will enhance care for all pregnant women and strengthen the overall system of care for individuals with SUD,' Templeton said.
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