Welcome to the week.

In 2023, an estimated 260,000 women died from causes related to pregnancy or childbirth. The maternal mortality rate is down about 40% since 2000, which means we’re making progress, but still have a ways to go before we reach the global goal.

Luckily, some of the most effective health tools to improve maternal mortality outcomes are cheap and simple. For instance, last week, the New York Times reported on an 80-cent piece of plastic that’s helping make childbirth safer in Nigeria.

So this week, we’re looking at the data on maternal deaths, where the risk is highest, what the US picture looks like, and of course, what we can do about it.

Let’s go.

— Willow

APL Positions of the week:

🫄 US maternal mortality below 15/100k (learn more)

🌎 Global maternal mortality below 70/100k (learn more)

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Globally, the maternal mortality ratio has fallen about 40% since 2000, to 197 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2023 (UNICEF). The UN’s 2030 target is 70.

Nearly 70% of maternal deaths happen in sub-Saharan Africa, and Nigeria alone accounts for about 29% of the world’s total (WHO, via OWID).

Interventions like a cheap plastic drape and treatment bundle have helped cut deaths from postpartum hemorrhage in Nigerian hospitals (The New York Times), and new US data shows that the maternal mortality rate has leveled off since 2023.

Getting to 70 deaths per 100,000 by 2030 from the current 197 would take a cut of about 64%.

The leading cause of maternal death worldwide is postpartum hemorrhage, severe bleeding after birth. It’s hard to catch in time because even experienced midwives and doctors consistently underestimate how much blood a woman has lost — Nigeria’s response is a calibrated plastic drape with a pouch that is marked at the danger level of 300 milliliters, paired with a “bundle” of treatments (massage, oxytocin, tranexamic acid, IV fluids) given all at once (The New York Times).

Together, researchers found that these methods cut deaths from postpartum hemorrhage in hospitals by about two-thirds — as long as the staffing exists to apply them.

In the US, the maternal mortality rate was 17.9 deaths per 100,000 live births in 2024 (CDC).

The gap between groups is wide: the rate for Black, non-Hispanic women was 44.8, about three times the rate of 14.2 for white non-Hispanic women (the US figures come from death certificates, a different method from the UN’s global estimates, so it’s difficult to compare the two directly).

Most maternal deaths are preventable.

The data shows we’re making progress using inexpensive tools that work in some of the most under-resourced places, but we still have more work to do, especially for Black women who die at about three times the rate of white women in the US (despite all of their work saving democracy, btw).

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Last week, we asked: Air pollution is estimated to contribute to what share of heart disease deaths worldwide?

The correct answer is 25%. Air pollution is linked to about one in four heart disease deaths worldwide, per the State of Global Air 2025 report.

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— Willow

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