role="main" class="main-container container js-quickedit-main-content" id="main-content">

Bill 33, Maternal Mental Health Day Act, 2023

Karpoche, Bhutila

Please select

View bill

Status

Debates

Original

Bill 33 Original (PDF)

EXPLANATORY

NOTE

The

Bill proclaims the first Wednesday of May in each year as Maternal Mental

Health Day.

Bill 33 2022

Act to proclaim Maternal Mental Health Day

Ontario, as many as one in five new mothers experience some type of maternal

mental illness, such as perinatal mood and anxiety disorder, during pregnancy

and in the first 12 months following childbirth. Frequently, maternal mental

illness goes unnoticed and untreated, causing negative impacts for the mental

and physical health and wellbeing of both mother and child.

Cis-gendered

women and trans men who give birth can experience maternal mental illness. Mothers

of every culture, age, income level and race can develop perinatal mood and

anxiety disorders. However, marginalized populations, such as LGBTQ2S+ people,

members of the Indigenous community, the Black community and other racialized

communities, adolescents, mothers with histories of substance use, immigrants,

refugees, and individuals with disabilities may experience maternal mental

illness at higher rates.

Maternal

mental illness is impacted and compounded by the social determinants of health

such as income, housing, employment, education, early childhood development,

perinatal health care, community and social supports and by structural

determinants such as family policy, employment policy, income support, social

insurance policy and education policy.

Newcomer

mothers who are removed from traditional family and cultural support tend to

experience higher levels of perinatal mood and anxiety disorders. Cultural

factors have been found to have a strong influence on promoting positive

perinatal mental health outcomes.

Maternal

mental illness is treatable and the negative impacts can be mitigated with

timely access to diagnosis, treatment and support services. However, up to 85

per cent of mothers with maternal mental illnesses go untreated. The stigma of

mental illness prevents mothers from seeking assistance and many mothers are

not aware they are suffering from a mental illness. Therefore, it is important

to heighten awareness of the prevalence of maternal mental illness and the

effective and well-researched prevention and treatment options available to

mothers.

proclaiming the first Wednesday in May of each year as Maternal Mental Health

Day, the Province of Ontario highlights the importance of maternal mental

health with the goal of enhancing the quality of care and improving the mental

health of mothers.

Therefore,

His Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of

the Province of Ontario, enacts as follows:

Maternal

Mental Health Day

The

first Wednesday of May in each year is proclaimed as Maternal Mental Health

Day.

Commencement

This Act comes into force on the day it receives Royal Assent.

Short

title

The

short title of this Act is the Maternal Mental Health Day Act, 2022 .

Date Bill stage Event Outcome Committee

February 21, 2023

Second Reading

Ordered referred to Standing Committee

Standing Committee on Social Policy

February 21, 2023

Second Reading

Vote

Carried

February 21, 2023

Second Reading

Ordered referred to Standing Committee

Standing Committee on Social Policy

February 21, 2023

Second Reading

Question put

February 21, 2023

Second Reading

Debated

November 3, 2022

First Reading

Ordered for Second Reading

November 3, 2022

First Reading

Vote

Carried

First Reading

November 3, 2022

Carried

Second Reading

February 21, 2023

Andrew, Jill

Toronto—St. Paul's

Karpoche, Bhutila

Parkdale—High Park

Martin, Robin

Eglinton—Lawrence

Taylor, Monique

Hamilton Mountain

Wong-Tam, Kristyn

Toronto Centre

Carried

Ordered referred to Standing Committee

Standing Committee on Social Policy

Was this page helpful? Yes , I found this page helpful. An optional survey will open in a new tab. No , I didn’t find this page helpful. An optional survey will open in a new tab.

Back to top