News: U.S. maternal mortality decreased in 2023, but racial disparities continue, CDC says

Maternal mortality in the United States decreased to 18.6 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2023, down from 22.3 in 2022, according to an American Hospital Association press release.

The press release contained new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which found that in 2023, 669 women died of maternal causes in the U.S., compared with 817 in 2022. Moreover, rates decreased significantly for women ages 25–39 and age 40 and older between 2022 and 2023.

The CDC also noted that “rates in 2023 were 12.5 deaths per 100,000 live births for women younger than age 25, 18.1 for those ages 25–39, and 59.8 for those age 40 and older,” with the “rate for women age[d] 40 and older” being “nearly five times higher than the rate for women younger than age 25.”

There was, however, a significant racial disparity in the CDC’s data: “While the mortality rate decreased overall, the maternal mortality rate for Black women in 2023 was 50.3 deaths per 100,000 live births, significantly higher than rates for white (14.5), Hispanic (12.4) and Asian (10.7) women.”

Editor’s note: To read the AHA’s coverage, click here. To read the CDC’s report, click here.