Maternal mortality rate in US soared 40% during Covid-19 pandemic

Wider access to insurance coverage to improve prenatal and follow-up care, and increasing transportation to medical facilities could help lower the death rate, according to the CDC

The US maternal mortality rate, already far higher than peer countries, soared during the pandemic.
 

More than 1,200 women in the US died of complications arising from pregnancy or childbirth in 2021, a 40% jump from 2020, according to data released Thursday by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That amounts to 32.9 deaths for every 100,000 live births.

The spread of Covid-19 was partly responsible for the grim statistic, with about a quarter of 2020 and 2021 deaths attributed to the virus, according to an October report from the US Government Accountability Office. However, the new data