The Crisis Facing American Women: Policy Solutions to Address Maternal Mortality in the United States
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Date
2019-05
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Abstract
In July of 2018, an investigation by USA Today found that the United States is the most dangerous place to give birth in the developed world with 50,000 mothers severely injured during or after childbirth and 700 deaths, most of which are preventable. This crisis is further exacerbated among certain populations, including Black women, Native American women, women of lower income and older women. Throughout history, the United States has been a vocal advocate in the movement to improve maternal health outcomes globally, but this effort has not been reflected within U.S. borders. In 2018, Congress passed the Preventing Maternal Deaths Act of 2018, one of the first pieces of legislation to address this crisis in decades, which established a federally funded program to review pregnancy-related deaths and develop a solution. However, a review board is not enough; countless advocacy organizations and medical professionals have proposed policy solutions to address the underlying issue- a lack of access to affordable, convenient, unbiased and respectful maternity care for all women during the prenatal and postnatal periods. This capstone will explore innovative and inclusive federal policies to address the crisis plaguing women and families in the United States.
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maternal health, women, maternal mortality