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United States -- December 29, 2022: Higher rates of maternal mortality and infant mortality, particularly among women of color,
can be found in states that have prohibited or restricted abortion access in the wake of the Roe v. Wade reversal, in comparison to places where abortion remains accessible.
This is what a new report from this month from The Commonwealth Fund found
United States -- December 29, 2022: Higher rates of maternal mortality and infant mortality, particularly among women of color, can be found in states
that have prohibited or restricted abortion access in the wake of the Roe v. Wade reversal, in comparison to places where abortion remains accessible.
This is according to a new report this month from The Commonwealth
According to the data, in 2020, the maternal mortality rate was 62% higher in states with stringent rules than in states without, and it increased “the maternal mortality rate was increasing nearly twice as fast in states with abortion restrictions,” authors wrote.
U.S. maternal death rates increased during the COVID-19 epidemic, particularly among Hispanic moms, who were already at a higher risk of dying during pregnancy before Roe v. Wade was overturned. When compared to other developed countries, the United States has the greatest rate of maternal mortality that is entirely avoidable.
Removing Roe v. Wade will negatively affect maternal health generally and disproportionately affect women of color, according to new research from The Commonwealth Fund.
Using data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the March of Dimes, and the Guttmacher Institute, researchers compared the current state of maternal and infant health in states that have already implemented or are likely to implement bans on abortion with states that will preserve abortion access.
Many states passed "trigger laws" before Roe v. Wade was overturned, which would have banned abortions nationwide once federal protections were removed.
Maternal mortality rates in restricted states are much higher across all racial and ethnic groups, but especially among non-Hispanic Black women (20%), white women (33%), and Hispanic women (31%).
Just over half of all births in 2020 occurred in the 26 states where abortion is illegal or heavily regulated. In states without legal access to abortion, the percentage of births to non-Hispanic white mothers was higher than in states where abortion was legal.
Women under the age of 30 were more likely to give birth in states with access restrictions.
“counties in which access to maternity health care services is limited or absent, either through lack of services or barriers to a woman’s ability to access that care within counties.” as described by the study's authors, is what researchers mean by "maternal care deserts." Comparatively, just 25% of counties met the criteria for a "maternal care desert" in states without restrictions on abortion.
But this could be because states with severe policies are more likely to be rural.
Furthermore, the ratio of obstetricians to births was 32% lower in these jurisdictions, while the ratio of certified nurse midwives to births was approximately 60% lower. Some maternal care providers have expressed reluctance about working in states where they may face legal difficulties, so this discrepancy may widen in the future.
In 2019, states with more stringent regulations had a 15% higher rate of fetal or infant fatalities within the first week of life compared to states with more lax regulations. Higher rates of neonatal mortality (deaths in the first 27 days of life) and postneonatal mortality (between 28 days and 1 year after birth) were observed in restrictive regimes.
Many states that restrict abortion access are also not among the 30 that have increased Medicaid coverage under the 2021 American Rescue Plan Act. State governments that want to participate in the expansion of Medicaid are permitted to offer postpartum care for up to a year, although federal law now only mandates coverage for the first 60 days after giving birth.
About half of the states that allow abortions have approved or are considering adopting the extension, but fewer than a third of the states that ban abortions have done so.
Data showed that states with less access to abortion also had more racial imbalance in their health care systems, fewer maternity care providers, a higher death rate among women of reproductive age (34% higher), and more maternity care deserts.
WNCTIMES by Marjorie Farrington
