The Black Mamas Matter Alliance (BMMA) founded Black Maternal Health Week, which is celebrated annually from April 11 to 17 during National Minority Health Month. Black Maternal Health Week amplifies the voices of Black mamas and brings awareness to Black-led maternal health and reproductive justice organizations that advocate for policy change and community-based solutions to advance Black maternal health equity.
This year’s theme, “Healing Legacies: Strengthening Black Maternal Health Through Collective Action and Advocacy,” emphasizes the importance of unity and advocacy for effective policy change in the Black maternal health space. Given the potential draconian cuts to Medicaid, Black mothers are at a high risk for catastrophic adverse birth outcomes, which are already poor.
Earlier this year, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Vital Statistics System released new data on national maternal mortality rates (MMR) for 2023, including data disaggregated by race and ethnicity. Maternal mortality rates decreased for every race except for non-Hispanic Black women where the rate slightly increased from being 49.5 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2022 and 50.3 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2023.
Black women are more than two to three times more likely to die due to pregnancy, childbirth, or postpartum complications than White women. With the current administration, maternal health faces threats on multiple fronts, including federal funding cuts to programs like Medicaid, WIC, and SNAP, declining access to care, and insufficient data. The Black Maternal Health Federal Policy Collective was founded by Dr. Jamila Taylor and operates under the purview of The Century Foundation. The Collective released a report on the State of Maternal Health 2025 that discusses the current maternal health landscape in the United States as well as policy recommendations that protect the interests of maternal health. Some of the policy recommendations include to:
- Maintain and Expand Medicaid Coverage
- Improve Health Insurance Coverage
- Expand Physical Access to High Quality Maternity Care
- Protect and Expand the Maternal Care Workforce
- Review Legislative Bills that have been Introduced to Improve Maternal Health
Editor’s note: To maintain accuracy, Georgetown CCF uses the term “women” when referencing statute, regulations, research, or other data sources that use the term “women” to define or count people who are pregnant or give birth. Where possible, we use more inclusive terms in recognition that not all individuals who become pregnant and give birth identify as women.