Casie Stoughton, director of Amarillo Public Health, appeared before the city council on Tuesday to advocate for additional funding to complete a new Women’s Health Clinic aimed at addressing a critical gap in healthcare services for women across the Texas Panhandle.
“Thank you, Mayor and Council, for having us back today,” Stoughton said. “We want to reiterate the critical need for Women’s Health Services in the Texas Panhandle.”
Stoughton explained that the initiative is a joint effort between Amarillo Public Health and Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center’s Vibrant Moms Project, which is supported by a National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant. The project’s goal is to improve maternity care in regions classified as “maternity care deserts.” Currently, 46 counties across Texas fall into this category, including many in West Texas and the Panhandle, where women have limited or no access to necessary maternal health services.
Data from Amarillo Public Health shows that in six of the region’s counties — Potter, Randall, Gray, Swisher, Parmer, and Deaf Smith — between 20% and 42% of women receive no prenatal care in their first trimester. Up to 48% of women enter pregnancy with chronic health conditions, increasing the risk of complications and underscoring the urgent need for improved women’s health services.