Dobbs decision is “devastating” U.S. maternal health, Biden administration says – By Oriana Gonzalez (Axios) / Dec 14, 2022
The Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision to end the constitutional right to abortion has been “devastating” to maternal health and widened gaps in care as the U.S. grapples with the highest maternal mortality rate among developed nations, Biden administration officials said Tuesday.
Driving the news: Maternal death rates in 2020 were 62% higher in states that ban or restrict abortion than in states where the procedure is still accessible, according to a report from the Commonwealth Fund released on Wednesday.
- Women of reproductive age in restrictive states have less access to affordable health plans and less access to maternity health care providers. These states had a 32% lower ratio of OB-GYNs to births and a 59% lower ratio of certified midwives to births.
What they’re saying: “This devastating Dobbs decision underscores that we need to keep battling relentlessly to protect and advance women’s maternal health,” said White House domestic policy adviser Susan Rice on Tuesday during a maternal health care event at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
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