The Biden administration has received a mixed response after replacing the word "mothers" with "birthing people" in the 2022 fiscal year budget.

The Maternal Health Guidance section of the proposed budget, which saw the ground-breaking use of the gender-neutral term, addressed efforts to "reduce maternal mortality rates and end race-based disparities in maternal mortality."

It stresses that people of color suffer the highest maternal mortality rate and that the US as a whole has the highest maternal mortality rate of all developed countries.

The section read:

"The United States has the highest maternal mortality rate among developed nations, with an unacceptably high mortality rate for Black, American Indian/Alaska Native, and other women of color.

"To help end this high rate of maternal mortality and race-based disparities in outcomes among birthing people."

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However, the use of the term "birthing people" as an alternative for the word "mothers" did not go down well with some conservative critics.

Heritage Action Executive Director Jessica Anderson tweeted: "Biden's budget would literally erase the word 'mother' and replace it with the woke and watered-down term 'birthing people' in relation to maternal health. Why does Biden want to cancel mothers?"

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Another critic wrote: "I earned the right to be called mother, mom, mommy and or mum. Ain’t no one taking that from me ever!!!!"

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/TamiWil11467138/status/1402760935203229701]]

A third added: "Let’s see: 'birthing person' or mom? I love my birthing person or I love my mom. I’m going to go with mom."

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However, others have fully embraced the more inclusive term used to describe those who give birth.

Pro-choice nonprofit NARAL wrote: "When we talk about birthing people, we're being inclusive. It's that simple. We use gender-neutral language when talking about pregnancy, because it's not just cis-gender women that can get pregnant and give birth. Reproductive freedom is for 'every' body."

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Another person pointed that "not all women are capable of being birthing people." They added: "It’s a valid demographic."

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A third supporter of gender-neutral language wrote: "People have vaginas. Birthing people have vaginas. Women have different genres of genitalia."

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Elsewhere in the budget proposal, it is revealed that "more than 200 million US Dollars to reduce maternal mortality and morbidity rates nationwide; bolster Maternal Mortality Review Committees; expand the Rural Maternity and Obstetrics Management Strategies program."

Featured image credit: Alamy / Chuck Nacke

Biden admin replaces 'mothers' with 'birthing people' in Maternal Health Guidance - and people are divided