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Black Maternal Mortality Is a Financial Crisis. And the Threats Are Getting Worse
Black women are the economic backbone of their families, and maternal mortality is a financial crisis that continues to worsen.
ESSENCE
By IWPR President and CEO Dr. Jamila K. Taylor
Read the Full ArticleConsider what is actually lost when a Black mother dies. Almost four out of five Black mothers serve as the sole or co-breadwinner for their families. More than half are raising children on their own. Nearly three out of five are financially supporting their extended family. When those women are taken too soon, the consequences are immediate and devastating: lost income, no one to cover childcare, and the slow unraveling of plans for home ownership, education, and retirement savings that may never be rebuilt. The loss of a Black mother doesn’t just break a family’s heart. It breaks its budget—and its future.
This is the reality behind a crisis that costs our society more than $30 billion annually and can keep families out of economic security for generations. The culprit is the United States’ abysmal record on maternal mortality and the staggering disparities for Black women. Black women are three times more likely to die from pregnancy than White women. The vast majority of pregnancy-related deaths—more than 80%—are preventable. While Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data show that maternal mortality rates decreased for Latinas and White women in 2023, Black women are the only demographic for which the numbers are increasing.
And earlier this month, just days before Black Maternal Health Week, which began this week, the White House released a budget request that would further cut programs designed to save women and children’s lives.
The financial wounds don’t stop at the immediate loss of a paycheck. Black women face compounding disadvantages that make every stage of this crisis more economically costly. Income disparities and lack of supportive workplace policies mean that 42% of Black women who take leave do so without pay. Research from my organization, the Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR), finds a positive health benefit for people with access to remote work—but Black women are less likely to have such jobs.