South Dakota Department of Health seeks staff, federal authority amid rise in maternal and infant deaths and lab backlogs

Melissa Maegstead, South Dakota secretary of health, told the Joint Appropriations Committee on Feb. 6 that the department is asking for new positions and federal spending authority to respond to several public‑health problems including rising maternal and infant mortality and slow follow‑up on newborn screening results.

Maegstead said the department’s quality improvement work reduced some federal‑grant overspending and improved service delivery — for example, adding about 1,700 hours in school health and allowing the WIC program to serve roughly 1,000 additional mothers and more than 6,000 babies and children per month — but that other problems require new staff and federal authority.

Maegstead told the committee the department is seeking a 1.0 full‑time equivalent (FTE) women’s health coordinator to focus on maternal mortality and a separate 1.0 FTE to manage newborn‑screen follow‑up. “The benchmark for follow‑up on newborn screening is 85 percent. South Dakota’s follow‑up rate is 21 percent,” Maegstead said, attributing the low rate to part‑time staffing for a time‑sensitive program.

The department…