Many know that for years there has been a strong push to have our New Hampshire lawmakers pass legislation which would allow working moms a postpartum paid leave to be with their newborn, provide working parents an opportunity to be with a critically ill child and give leave to adult children to be with a dying parent. This year we have a bill before the House, HB 17610, which would provide this important Paid Family and Medical Leave.
I remember well, a night in 1991 when former Rep. Mary Gile called to tell me about a bill she was sponsoring for Paid Family Leave. We knew each other through South Church in Concord. She and I shared a passion for the welfare of young children and families. I had become a strong advocate for paid maternity leave, having seen women six weeks following the birth of their babies still healing, nursing and often learning how to be a mother for the first time, torn between returning to work to keep their livelihood or staying home with their new baby.
To be truthful, Mary did not ask me if I would testify in support of her paid family leave legislation. She just informed me where and when the House hearing was taking place and advised me to be there 20 minutes early so she could introduce me to some of the committee members.
It is appalling that for the past three decades, we have been the only developed country in the world without paid maternity leave. France provides six months of leave to a mom having her first child and nine months for every subsequent baby. The UK, Germany and Italy all provide nine months of paid leave, Russia 12 months and China and Japan extended postpartum leaves.
In 30 years of effort, New Hampshire has come a long way. Many Granite Staters understand not only that new moms need time with their newborn, but that workers should have the opportunity to be with a critically ill child or a dying parent. In 2019, Mary and I celebrated as our Paid Family Leave legislation advanced through both the Senate and the House with bipartisan support.
Unfortunately, Governor Chris Sununu vetoed the bill, claiming that it was a “paid vacation” and an “unfair tax.” Remarkably, his veto was in the face of more than 80% of citizens and over 100 businesses, large and small, in favor of the bill.
During my last conversation with Mary, before she died, she made me promise not to give up. She assured me, that we would soon have a governor, or a national government, that understood her wisdom. Unfortunately, our leaders fail to comprehend that the first few months of life last forever. Renown Harvard pediatrician, Barry Brazelton, established 50 years ago that early bonding, what he called “attachment,” between new parents and a baby is critical to the future development of the child and parents.
Good science has shown that the toxic stress of neglect of a baby correlates with persistent behavior and learning problems later in life. Adults who experienced an “unloving” childhood are much less likely to lead happy, productive lives and they are much more likely to develop chronic medical problems such as obesity, hypertension, diabetes, mental illness and addiction.
A pediatric colleague once said to me, “We can invest in early childhood or we can build more hospitals and prisons 20 years later at a much greater cost to society.” She was pleading for us to understand that the most effective window to bring about change in the health and welfare of society isn’t high school or even kindergarten. It is very early childhood.
If we want young adults who choose not to abuse themselves or others, we must first create young children with a deep sense of self worth. Those who have been well loved, learn to love well. Those who have been cared for deeply, learn to care deeply about others. It all starts in the beginning.
It should be no surprise that people in developed countries with paid family leave experience less crime, live longer than us and spend half of what we spend on health care.
Paid family leave and, in particular, paid maternity leave, is fundamental to a healthy society. It provides the framework for a precious childhood — the foundation on which responsible, healthy, caring adults grow.
Please ask our legislators to support HB 1761.
Oge Young is a retired OB-GYN. He practiced in Concord for more than 30 years, was the president of New Hampshire Medical Society and was a member of the general council representing New Hampshire obstetricians.