Another article highlights maternal health in the US. The article in BBC News entitled Why US mothers are more likely to die in childbirth, discusses the recent CDC research that found that
“In 2021, 33 women died out of every 100,000 live births in the US, up from 23.8 in 2020.
That rate was more than double for black women, who were nearly three times more likely to die than white women, according to the CDC.”
This article speculated on why black mothers are at a higher risk of dying in the UK. It states:
“Experts say the vast majority of the maternal deaths happen shortly after giving birth, when many women are forced to return to work and are unable to continue with post-partum care.
Black Americans in particular are often employed in low-income jobs that offer little-to-no health insurance coverage and minimal time off for maternity leave.
Many of those same jobs, like food service, were deemed essential during the pandemic and workers were unable to work from home. This increased black women’s chances of exposure to Covid-19 and, without adequate access to healthcare, contributed to higher rates of death.”
HEALTH CONVERSATIONS: When Aware We Care 