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Event Location: Ohio Statehouse
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Infant Vitality Advocacy Day 2025
Infant
Vitality
ADVOCACY DAY
September 30, 2025
Ohio Statehouse
Join First Year Cleveland and infant and maternal health partners and advocates from across the state for the third annual Infant Vitality Advocacy Day. Together, we can lift the voices of our most precious residents and illuminate the way to more first birthdays for Ohio babies. We welcome one and all to participate in a day filled with opportunities to meet with state policymakers and advocate for change.
Founding Partners
Infant Vitality
Advocacy Day 2025
About the Event
Join partners from across the state to amplify the need for support for Ohio’s infants and families. The day includes opportunities to connect with other infant and maternal health advocates, meet with your local legislators and attend an evening reception. You are responsible for scheduling and meeting with your local representatives on your own, but we provide a wealth of resources, including training videos, talking points, and a leave behind on our shared statewide priorities, to ensure these meetings are fruitful. You can attend all or a portion of the day.
Event Details
Date and Time
Tuesday, September 30, 2025
8:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Location
Ohio Statehouse
1 Capitol Square
Columbus, OH 43215
Who Should Attend?
Infant and maternal health providers, nonprofits, policymakers, researchers, students, families – anyone who cares about Ohio’s infants and families can join us in advocating for change!
Advocacy Resources
Anyone can be an advocate, but sometimes meeting with legislators can seem intimidating or overwhelming. We’ve pulled together a number of resources to help you feel prepared and ready to educate and inspire! Start by checking out our Participant Guide, which includes details on the day and links to resources.
Latest Updates
March for Change
Black Maternal Health Caucus Summit
When: Tuesday, April 14, 2026
Where: Ohio Statehouse
Black Maternal Health Week • Cleveland Panel Discussion
When: Wednesday, April 15, 1:00 – 2:30 p.m.
Where: Zoom
Black Maternal Health Week: Policies that Impact Cleveland Moms and Babies
Ohio Infant Vitality Advocacy Day, September 29, 2026
When: Tuesday, September 29, 2026
Where: Ohio Statehouse
More details on how to register coming soon.
Illuminating
Infant Vitality
Infant vitality refers to the conditions necessary for babies to thrive–conditions grounded in responsive health care, community support and systemic change. By focusing on solutions that can address and prevent infant mortality, or death in children under the age of one, we can build more vibrant communities for babies and families. These solutions get to the root causes of infant mortality, addressing access to housing, maternal health, paid leave, child care, and more.
Infant Vitality FAQs
What is the Infant Mortality Rate?
The infant mortality rate is the number of infant deaths per 1,000 live births. According to the National Institutes of Health, the infant mortality rate reflects “the institutional and structural factors affecting the health of entire populations.” It is a key indicator of the overall health of a region.
What are the leading causes of infant mortality?
Most of the factors that lead to infant mortality are outside an individual’s control and show up in nearly every facet of life. These social determinants, or drivers, of health are defined by the CDC as “the conditions in which people are born, grow, work, live, worship, and age.” These non-medical factors can lead to prematurity, sleep-related incidents and birth defects, all causes of infant deaths.
What are social drivers of health?
Social drivers of health, sometimes referred to as social determinants of health, are non-medical factors that impact health, such as where you live, work and go to school. First Year Cleveland uses the term “driver” to emphasize that health outcomes are not predetermined and can be changed.
How do outcomes in Ohio compare to other states?
The infant mortality rate in Ohio stands at 7.1, which is higher than the national rate of 5.5. For more information on the infant mortality rate in your community or as compared to other states, refer to the Ohio Department of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Wonder database.
What is advocacy and why is it important?
Advocacy can be defined as any activity, including media campaigns, public speaking and commissioned research, that aims to educate and influence policymakers at the local, state and national levels to consider policies that can address certain problems. The advocacy we are undertaking is different from formal lobbying, which is a type of advocacy where a direct approach is made to legislators on a specific piece of legislation. There are strict legal and IRS rules for nonprofits related to lobbying. Infant Vitality Advocacy Day is an opportunity to educate legislators about infant vitality and inspire them to consider policies that are supportive of infant vitality in the future. Advocacy is important because it helps give voice to those who may not otherwise be heard and can lead to real and lasting change.
How can I find infant vitality data about my region?
First Year Cleveland hosts a wealth of data on conditions in Cuyahoga County on its website. The Ohio Department of Health has county level infant mortality data and an infant mortality scorecard that can be viewed by county or OCPIM region. This report from Groundwork Ohio looks at infant vitality at the state level over a 10-year period.
What Are We Advocating For?
We are advocating for the vitality of Ohio’s babies and families—for every baby in Ohio to celebrate their first birthday. We want to see public policies that support and advance the conditions necessary for babies and families to thrive.
In 2025, we’re focusing our advocacy efforts on maternal mental health and economic stability. Infant Vitality Advocacy Day 2025 is an opportunity to educate lawmakers on how vital mental health support is for mothers and how pending cuts to federal support programs will impact the economic stability–and health–of Ohio families. More details on our 2025 priority issues can be found in our Shared Priorities Issue Brief.
Maternal Mental Health
Maternal Mental Health
Ohio needs more mental health providers and better reimbursement systems to support the mental health of mothers.
Economic Stability
Economic Stability
Pending cuts to Medicaid, SNAP and other federal support programs will disproportionately impact Ohio families who are already struggling. This has a direct impact on the health of babies and families.
Lighting the Way
Across Ohio
This is the third year for Infant Vitality Advocacy Day—and it’s been growing every year! Last year, more than 60 people from 31 organizations from Butler, Cuyahoga, Franklin, Hamilton, Lucas, Mahoning, and Summit Counties met with lawmakers at the Statehouse to champion policies that will help Ohio babies and families thrive. Thank you to all those joining our growing network of infant vitality advocates!
Explore the map to learn more about the founding partners behind Infant Vitality Advocacy Day. Our network of partners and supporters continues to grow each year.
First Year Cleveland is a community movement dedicated to helping all babies celebrate their first birthdays.
OCPIM brings together various organizations and individuals across Ohio who are committed to eliminating infant mortality.
With a vision of creating a healthier and more resilient future, CelebrateOne collaborates with local organizations, healthcare providers and community members to tackle the complex issues contributing to infant mortality.
Cradle Cincinnati is a network of community members and organizations working across sectors to measurably improve Cincinnati’s infant mortality rate.
Our Network of Partners & Supporters
When you register for Infant Vitality Advocacy Day, you have the option to add your organization’s logo to our growing list of supporters.
