According to the report, America is the least safe place in the developed WORLD to have a baby
America is the least safe place for women to give birth among wealthy countries, a new report suggests.
The US had a maternal mortality rate – the number of women who died during pregnancy or in the moments or weeks after giving birth – of 22 per 100,000 live births in 2022.
This was the highest rate among the fourteen high-income countries in Europe, Asia, South America and Oceania studied in the report.
It means that American women are nine times more likely to die during or shortly after pregnancy than those in Sweden, and four times more likely than British women.
The above graph shows the maternal mortality rate by country. The percentage is that of women who died during pregnancy, during childbirth or up to 42 days after childbirth, where the cause of death was related to the pregnancy.
The report also shows that the US has the second-lowest number of midwives and midwives per live birth among high-income countries, which may contribute to the country’s high maternal mortality rate.
According to estimates, a third of vacancies are currently unfilled.
The researchers point out that the US is the only country in the group of countries that does not mandate any form of paid maternity leave for pregnant women – which could explain the high suicide rate among new mothers in the US.
America was also the only country without universal health care coverage an estimated eight million women, or 12 percent of those of childbearing age, are uninsured.
They said high medical costs may also have played a role in some deaths.
The report analyzed the maternal mortality rate, which is defined as deaths among women during pregnancy, childbirth or up to 42 days after delivery. All deaths were related to pregnancy in some way.
The US had the worst rate in the entire group, followed by Chile (14.3 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births) and New Zealand.
At the other end of the scale was Norway, which recorded no maternal deaths in 2022.
In second place was Switzerland, with 1.2 maternal deaths per 100,000, and in third place was Sweden, with 2.6.
The above shows pregnancy-related deaths in the US by when they occurred; the majority occur after delivery
The above shows the number of obstetricians and obstetricians per patient, with the US having the second lowest number among rich countries
Australia ranks sixth with a rate of 3.5 per 100,000 – or six times lower than the US – and Britain is eighth.
The most common causes of death were severe bleeding, high blood pressure or infections and cardiomyopathy – or heart disease.
Separate data also showed that the US had the second-lowest number of midwives and obstetricians per live birth among high-income countries, putting further strain on the medical system.
Chile has the largest supply of obstetricians and midwives, with 92 staff per 1,000 live births.
In the US, there are only 16 obstetricians and midwives for every 1,000 live births, according to the report, published by New York City-based think tank the Commonwealth Fund, which compares the US maternal mortality rate with that of comparable countries. .
The countries included in the report were: Australia, Canada, France, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Researchers used maternal mortality rate (MMR) data from the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) to compare the countries.
Among the mothers who died after giving birth in the US was 30-year-old Christine Fields of Long Island City.
She was admitted to Woodhull Hospital in Brooklyn in November 2023 for her third delivery, but died hours later of a hemorrhage.
Jasmine Patton, 34, of Tennessee, died of liver failure after giving birth. Her family said there were questions about her death
Her family is now suing the hospital for $41 million, saying she received careless and negligent care. They claim the mother suffered lacerations to her blood vessels, causing the internal bleeding.
And in another case, 34-year-old Jasmine Patton, of Chattanooga, Tennessee, died just two days after giving birth to her first child.
The mother, who had struggled to conceive for years before using IVF, had the cause of death described as liver failure.
Her family said her death was “unexpected” and that doctors had many questions about the fatal outcome.