While lack of access to health care has certainly contributed to maternal and infant death in the Black community, it doesn’t account for the extreme racial disparities seen in pregnancy-related outcomes. A growing body of evidence indicates that social, economic and psychological factors play a role as well…read more
In the U.S., Black Mothers Need More Than Health Care
Posted onBy Elizabeth Dawes Gay. Last month, over a thousand people gathered in Mexico City for the Global Maternal and Newborn Health Conference. Much of the discourse centered on improving health care for mothers and babies, as it tends to both globally and nationally in the United States. The conference also had an equity theme, which is a critical part of the conversation on maternal health in the United States. Without it, our opportunities to make real progress for all women are limited.
In the United States, the pregnancy-related mortality rate in 2011 was 17.8 women per 100,000 live births. A closer look reveals that the pregnancy-related mortality rate for Black women is three times higher than that of white women… read more