What happened?

The maternal mortality rate for the U.S. remains above the national health target set for the end of this decade. More than 649 women died from pregnancy-related causes in 2024, the latest year tallied according to a report put out by the nonpartisan research arm of Congress.

The U.S. maternal mortality rate stood at 17.9 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2024, above the Healthy People 2030 goal of 15.7. That federal program sets national health benchmarks for the decade.

Why Does it Matter to Me?

The rate is not uniform across the population.

Non-Hispanic Black women faced a maternal mortality rate of 50.3 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2023, the report found. That is nearly 3.5 times the rate for non-Hispanic White women, recorded at 14.5 over the same period.

Age also plays a role. Women 40 and older face the highest rates overall. For women ages 45 to 49, the pregnancy-related mortality rate was more than eight times greater than for women ages 35 to 39 in 2024.

Both sides, now

The CRS report describes the data and trends but does not advocate for a specific policy response. It does flag a measurement problem that could affect how the U.S. tracks progress going forward.

The U.S. currently records maternal deaths using the International Classification of Diseases, 10th edition (ICD-10), a global standard for coding causes of death. The World Health Organization's updated ICD-11 took effect in 2022, and other member countries are expected to shift to it. All ICD-11 work in the U.S. has been suspended following the country's withdrawal from the World Health Organization, the report notes. That means U.S. data may eventually become harder to compare with figures from other nations.

Congress has the authority to fund programs that address maternal health and to direct federal agencies to act on the data yet there isn't any specific legislation tied to this report currently moving through Congress.

What happens next?

The Healthy People 2030 target of 15.7 deaths per 100,000 live births gives policymakers a concrete benchmark to measure against between now and the end of 2030. The U.S. rate has declined from its peak of 32.9 in 2021 but has not returned to its 2018 low of 17.4.

For the rate to fall further, federal or state action on funding, clinical standards, or access to care would need to advance through the normal legislative or regulatory process.

---

Spot something wrong? Report an issue with this article