A new report warns that the United States is facing a maternity care crisis, with one in three counties lacking obstetric (relating to childbirth and the processes associated with it) doctors to provide care. The report, released by the infant and maternal care organization, March of Dimes, indicates that many obstetricians, gynecologists, and family physicians are leaving the workforce. The workforce shortage is worsening rapidly, with projections indicating a shortfall of 12,000 to 15,000 ob/gyns by 2050. Not only is the shortage compounded by nursing shortages brought on by the pandemic, but also some hospitals have decided to close obstetric units, leaving patients with limited options for delivery.
Additionally, the US Supreme Court’s 2022 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade has impacted how and where ob/gyns provide care. In states with extremely restrictive abortion laws, physicians face severe consequences and risk of losing their licenses for providing medically necessary abortions.
About 1,104 counties across the US are maternity care “deserts”, lacking birthing facilities and obstetric clinics. These counties are home to 2.3 million women of reproductive age. Women who gave birth to more than 150,000 babies in 2022. About 6 in 10 maternity care deserts are in rural regions as hospitals continue to eliminate obstetric services.
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologist (ACOG) is advocating to advance policies to support training and education for non-obstetric health care professionals and emergency medical workers, especially in rural areas where mothers have to travel long distances to receive obstetric services.
When examining these faults in maternity care, the same demographic that already faces inadequate access to health care in the South and the Midwest also lacks access to critical maternity care. Overall, the foundations of the public health infrastructure in this country must make massive strides to address the divide in the broken system.
