Why more black women die in labour - and what NYC is doing about it

Black women in New York are three times as likely as white women to suffer from life-threatening complications during childbirth, and 12 times as likely to die from pregnancy-related causes. Strikingly, racial disparities persist even when usual risk factors, including education and poverty, are accounted for; college-educated black mothers have worse health outcomes than white women without high school degrees. The New York City Health Department is tackling this racial inequity head-on with multiple clinical and community-based initiatives, including a scheme offering black women support from "doulas"; non-medical helpers who provide emotional and physical support. It has also implemented the US’s first citywide data collection and surveillance system for severe maternal health complications to focus attention on racial inequities and their causes.