U.S. maternal mortality rate dropped in 2022 after six-decade high blamed largely on COVID
CBSN
New York — Deaths of pregnant women in the U.S. fell in 2022, dropping significantly from a six-decade high during the pandemic, new data suggests. More than 1,200 U.S. women died in 2021 during pregnancy or shortly after childbirth, according to a final tally released Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In 2022, there were 733 maternal deaths, according to preliminary agency data, though the final number is likely to be higher.
Officials say the 2022 maternal death rate is on track to get close to pre-pandemic levels. But that's not great: The rate before COVID-19 was the highest it had been in decades.
"From the worst to the near worst? I wouldn't exactly call that an accomplishment," said Omari Maynard, a New Yorker whose partner died after childbirth in 2019.
