Celebrating Black Maternal Health Week and Healthy Motherhood for All

The worsening maternal morbidity and mortality crisis in the United States continues to gain national attention. This crisis, though unacceptable for all, is worse for Black women, who are three to five times more likely to have a maternal death than white women, more likely to suffer from mood disorders like postpartum depression, and disproportionately lack access to timely, quality health care. ?

The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated already-existing disparities, as African Americans make up 30% of COVID-19 cases in the United States but only 13% of the total population, and the maternal mortality rate for non-Hispanic Black women in 2020, amid the pandemic, climbed faster than the rate for non-Hispanic White women.?Pregnant people with COVID-19 are at increased risk for severe illness and adverse outcomes for both mom and baby, stated Dr. Jasmine Johnson, a maternal-fetal medicine fellow,?in a 2021 video interview with the Society for Women’s Health Research (SWHR). ?

In an effort to address maternal health disparities and improve outcomes for Black mothers everywhere, April 11 through 17 marks the fifth Annual Black Maternal Health Week 2022. Founded by Black Mamas Matter Alliance, Inc. (BMMA) and amplified through a congressional resolution from Senators Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and Cory Booker (D-NJ), Black Maternal Health Week is a week of awareness, activism, and community building, themed around “Building for Liberation: Centering Black Mamas, Black Families, and Black Systems of Care.”?

Discussions about maternal health disparities and racism is a crucial first step to this work, Dr. Johnson underscored. For physicians particularly, she recommended they center the mother’s experience:?

“Have a conversation with [Black moms], before they get to the labor room, [to explain] that you want to partner with them, and that you acknowledge their risk of just being a Black woman in America.” ?

These discussions, coupled with organizations improving data collection efforts and implementing maternal health policy, are all important steps to improving health outcomes. ?

SWHR is proud to support the Black Maternal Health Momnibus Act, a package of policy proposals to address the inequities at the root of the maternal health crisis and improve outcomes, spanning the perinatal workforce, maternal mental health equity programs, and more. The first of these bills, the Protecting Moms Who Served Act, was passed in November 2021, with nine additional bills included in the text of the Build Back Better Act, which is currently stalled in the Senate. See the status of the bills on the Century Foundation’s interactive legislative tracker. ?

While it will take participation across the health ecosystem to address the maternal disparities that Black mothers face, Black Maternal Health Week brings important national attention to this crisis and helps lay a foundation to move forward. How are you recognizing Black Maternal Health Week 2022? #BMHW22??

Check out Dr. Johnson’s full interviews on SWHR’s YouTube here: Maternal Health Disparities: A Q&A with Dr. Jasmine Johnson and COVID-19 and Maternal Health: A Q&A with Dr. Jasmine Johnson??

Read more about COVID-19 vaccine recommendations if you are pregnant or breastfeeding and other maternal immunization recommendations on SWHR’s website.?