Let me ask you this. Why are so few babies being born in America? What can be done to solve this demographic crisis?
If you’re a parent or grandparent, as I am, these questions are of paramount importance. After all, we want our children and grandchildren to form lasting, fruitful marriages so their children will be able to choose from a large pool of potential spouses, get married, and perpetuate the generations to come.
As you know, the birthrate in America has fallen below the replacement level of 2.1 children per woman. Right now, the birth rate is 1.60 — an all-time low.
The handwriting is on the wall. I’m not going to sugarcoat this demographic emergency for you. I’ll give you the unvarnished truth.
You see, at a certain point, the declining birth rate — unless it’s reversed — will reach the point of no return. That has already happened in certain countries that have had ultra-low birth rates for a long time — like China and Japan. In the coming decades, they’ll learn a hard lesson as their populations shrink and shrink toward virtual extinction!
Unless the falling birth-rate in America is reversed, the ultimate fate of Americans will be the same.
Consider what has happened to Catholic parishes in America. Over 1,000 have been closed for lack of parishioners.
Surely the bishops are encouraging American Catholics to have more babies, right? Wrong. They’ve followed a different strategy. Hoping to fill the pews, the bishops partnered with the U.S. government to bring a massive wave of unvetted, illegal aliens into our country. (The bishops should butt out of politics, say no to government funding, and preach true doctrine.)
Here at PRI we don’t wait for the bishops to lead as they spin their wheels on political controversies that are the province of the laity. Instead, we continue to sound the alarm about the demographic emergency and lead the multi-front battle to reverse the trend toward extinction.
Indeed, that has been our mission for decades, ever since PRI was founded by the visionary international pro-life pioneer Fr. Paul Marx, O.S.B.
There’s no quick fix for this stubborn problem, which must be addressed from every angle. PRI has long advocated government policies that encourage births.
PRI’s breakthrough proposal: Make births free!
Do you realize how expensive it is to give birth to a baby in America today?
Without insurance, a young couple giving birth in a hospital will be behind the 8-ball to the tune of $14,000 to $30,000, assuming no complications. Heaven help the couple if their baby has to be admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU)!
With insurance, the couple will still be on the hook for about $2,500 to $5,000,
depending on the plan. OUCH! That’s a heavy financial hit for a young couple.
With steep costs like these, even for insured couples, is it any wonder that the birth rate is so low?
Over half of Millennials and “Zoomers” (members of Generation Z) are deliberately holding off on having children because of finances. The main reason is because they believe they can’t afford to raise a child.
The government obviously has an interest in raising the birth rate — especially if it wants to avoid the grim fate that awaits anti-baby countries like China and Japan. Therefore, it would make perfect sense for the government to cover the entire cost of giving birth.
One of PRI’s key employees, Chiara McKenna, wrote a superb article advocating for a government policy that makes births free.
She just had a beautiful, healthy baby boy, so she knows first-hand what their outof- pocket costs are for the birth. Fortunately, they have good insurance. It also helps that PRI offers our employees a $100-a-month child bonus from conception.
Chiara and her husband hope to be blessed with a large family. This should be the norm for a Catholic family, as it once was! It bears repeating that America urgently needs more babies.
Is a “make births free” policy feasible for the government? Is it politically realistic? Consider this. The Trump Administration has already passed quite a few of the pro-life policies recommended by PRI, such as ending the U.S. AID racket and cutting off funds from Planned Parenthood.
What’s more, when Vice President Vance (a Catholic convert) was in the U.S. Senate, he voiced support for making births free in a post on X, stating, “We sent over $100 billion to Ukraine in the last year. For half that, we could make birth free in this country, end the surprise billings that devastate families with newborns, and possibly save the lives of a lot of new moms.”
You can see, therefore, that PRI’s make births free proposal is both feasible and realistic.
You can help me launch a campaign to make births free
For less than $90,000 I can launch a multi-prong campaign, including social media, to build public support for our proposal to make births free. Funds permitting, we’ll release a blizzard of posts on Twitter/X, memes, Instagram reels, YouTube videos, and messages on other outlets. PRI articles on popular Internet sites will reach millions more.
You’ve been a faithful partner in PRI’s life-saving, life-changing work. That’s why I’m praying that you’ll send a generous gift to help me raise $84,700 to launch a hardhitting social media campaign about making births free and to keep our other pro-life projects going.
PRI receives no money from wealthy foundations, billionaires, or government grants. Instead, I’m honored to say that we raise the funds we need through voluntary, sacrificial gifts from dear friends like you — gifts of $40 … $50 … $75 … $100 … $150 … $250 … $500. A gift of $1,000 or more would be a tremendous blessing!
Could you consider making one of those sacrifices now, regardless of the amount?
Your gift will help PRI promote a pro-birth, pro-life society
The alarming drop in the birth rate isn’t a typical emergency — like a flood, a hurricane, a wildfire, or a tsunami. It’s not immediately obvious. Most people are unaware of it.
But what’s at stake in this emergency is our posterity — the kind of future we’ll leave for our children and grandchildren. People like you and me care deeply about this future, which depends on what we do while there’s still time to turn around the falling birth rate.
Your gift at this time will help keep all of our pro-life projects firing on all cylinders. Please pray for our work, and if possible, send a generous gift.
Yours for Life,
Steven W. Mosher
P. S. America now faces a fork in the road. As far as Life is concerned, we will either go down China’s path toward an ever-shrinking population or the American way toward a future of growth and freedom. Can we count on you again? Please send your taxdeductible gift today.