US Has 'Profoundly Disturbing' Stats on Maternal Mortality

We're the worst out of all high-income nations, with Black patients especially suffering
By Jenn Gidman,  Newser Staff
Posted Jun 4, 2024 9:19 AM CDT
US Is Worst of All Developed Nations for Childbirth
Stock photo.   (Getty Images/SerrNovik)

When it comes to how patients fare during pregnancy and after giving birth, the United States is lagging. According to new research released Tuesday by the private Commonwealth Fund, the US has the highest maternal mortality rate of the 14 high-income nations examined in the study, and Black women fare worst of all. "We can't just think of reproductive health at the time of pregnancy, because a lot happens after the baby is born," study co-author Munira Z. Gunja tells the Washington Post. "If we're not supporting women during this crucial time period, we're never going to solve this problem."

  • The numbers: Using data from the CDC and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, which follows health system metrics, the study found that in 2022, 22 or so maternal deaths happened in the US for every 100,000 live births. Some 65% of those occurred after childbirth. More than 80% of pregnancy-related deaths are likely preventable, per the study.

  • Black patients: That number is even higher for Black Americans: 49.5 deaths per 100,000 live births. "The US is still such an outlier, and the racial disparities are profoundly disturbing," says the Commonwealth Fund's Dr. Laurie Zephyrin, per a release.
  • Leading causes: In the first week after giving birth, severe bleeding, infection, and high blood pressure most often lead to a new mother's death in the US, researchers say. For patients who die after that during their postpartum recovery, cardiomyopathy, a disorder of the heart muscle, is the top cause of death.
  • Comparison: Ten of the 14 developed nations that were looked at had a death rate of less than 10 per 100,000 live births in 2022. Norway came in with zero fatalities.
  • Where the US is lacking: The Post points out that the US is the only nation on the list that doesn't have universal health care or a federally mandated leave policy for new parents. There's also not guaranteed access to home health visits after childbirth in America, like the other countries have, and there's a shortage of maternity care providers, including OB-GYNs and midwives.
  • The midwife factor: The report notes that a global midwife workforce could provide 80% of needed maternal care, possibly preventing 41% of maternal deaths, 39% of neonatal deaths, and more than a quarter of stillbirths.
(More maternal mortality stories.)

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