MMHLA ANNOUNCES NEW STAFF
JAMIE BELSITO JOINS MMHLA AS POLICY DIRECTOR
MMHLA is thrilled to announce that Founder Jamie Zahlaway Belsito is taking on a new role as the organization's first full-time Policy Director. Jamie is a subject matter expert in maternal mental health policies at the state and federal level. A Boston native, Jamie was a Commissioner on the (MA) Ellen Story Special Commission on Postpartum Depression and is the former Advocacy Chair for the National Coalition for Maternal Mental Health. Jamie led a grassroots movement of mothers and families across the United States to help pass the Bringing Postpartum Depression Out of the Shadows Act in 2016, the first-ever federal legislation addressing maternal mental health. 
Jamie says, "I founded MMHLA in 2018 so that maternal mental health policy would be a constant focus in the development and maintenance of our nation's healthcare policy. MMHLA is here to promote the mental health of childbearing women in the United States by advocating for universal education, screening, referral, and treatment of postpartum depression and related maternal mental health (MMH) conditions. As MMHLA's Policy Director, I look forward to working with our federal leaders by focusing on positive policy outcomes on these important issues."
MMHLA INTERNS
MMHLA has launched an internship program in partnership with the Milken Institute of Public Health at George Washington University. Meet MMHLA's 2020-21 interns, both of whom are masters-level public health students with a passion for maternal health.
Aminat Balogun
At GW, Aminat is specializing in Maternal & Child Health. She is also a part time Research Assistant at GW's Global Women’s Institute, where she conducts research on the prevention of violence against women and girls in humanitarian settings. Aminat’s professional interests include patient-centered and community-based care, with a focus on improving pregnancy and childbirth experiences for Black women in the United States.

Aminat is helping to establish an Advisory Committee to guide MMHLA on issues of equity, diversity, and inclusion.
Rana Abdel-Rahman
Rana is a native Virginian who graduated from the University of Virginia in 2019 with a double major in Psychology and Global Public Health. A first-generation Egyptian-American, Rana is committed to understanding the impact of cultural and religious determinants on the health of Middle Eastern popula-tions, specifically how these factors affect the mental health of refugee, immigrant, and asylee mothers and children from the region. 

Rana is helping MMHLA gather and assess data about maternal mental health, especially as it relates to racial biases and health equity.

Working with Policy Makers to Address Maternal Mental Health Challenges
MMHLA -- founded in 2018 -- is a nonpartisan 501(c)3 non-profit organization
dedicated to promoting the mental health of childbearing women in the United States
by advocating for universal education, screening, referral, and treatment
of postpartum depression and related maternal mental health (MMH) conditions.

Our vision is that all childbearing women in the United States will be educated about and screened for maternal mental health conditions and have access to resources for recovery.