A new CDC report shows early prenatal care in the U.S. has declined from 78.3% of births in 2021 to 75.5% in 2024, a troubling drop that experts warn could endanger mothers and babies — particularly in minority communities and areas facing growing ‘maternity care deserts.’
A federal report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that the share of US births to women who begin prenatal care in the first trimester of pregnancy dropped from 78.3% in 2021 to 75.5% in 2024.
The trend of delaying or getting no prenatal care at all can be risky for a mother to be and her baby, according to experts. And according to the CDC the trend is more pronounced for women in minority groups.
The report doesn’t identify the reason for the drop in prenatal care but other research suggests one reason might be the lack of providers or clinics in many parts of the country. These so-called maternity care deserts mean women who are pregnant may have to travel long distances to get prenatal care.
The George Washington University has experts available to comment on all aspects of this trend. To schedule an interview with an expert please contact Kathy Fackelmann, kfackelmann@email.gwu.edu or Katelyn Deckelbaum, katelyn.deckelbaum@gwu.edu.
Anne Markus is a professor and chair of the Department of Health Policy and Management at the GW Milken Institute School of Public Health. She is an expert on access to care and can talk about how maternity care deserts, places where maternal health care is limited, can affect the outcome of a pregnancy.
Amita Vyas, director of the GW Maternal and Child Health Center at Milken Institute School of Public Health, can discuss the drop in prenatal care and what can be done to reverse the unhealthy trend.
Caitlin Murphy is a research scientist in the Department of Health Policy and Management at the GW Milken Institute School of Public Health. She is an expert in maternal and child health, women’s health, reproductive health and disparities in health among vulnerable populations.
Julia Strasser, is the director of the Reproductive Health Workforce & Policy Research Center at the Fitzhugh Mullan Institute for Health Workforce Equity within the GW Milken Institute School of Public Health. She is an expert on reproductive health care.
Linda Cassar, clinical associate professor at the GW School of Nursing, has worked primarily with the maternal/child health patient population over her 30 years as a nurse, working in labor and delivery, mother/baby, high-risk antepartum, and outpatient community perinatal education.
Suzan Ulrich is the director of midwifery education at the GW School of Nursing. She has been a midwife since 1983 and an educator of nurses and midwives for over 40 years.
Tarnisha Hemphill is an assistant professor of nursing at GW. Her area of expertise is promoting diversity and equity in health care and improving prenatal care access to underserved populations with health disparities.
Nancy Gaba is professor and chair of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the GW School of Medicine and Health Sciences and is board certified in Obstetrics and Gynecology.
Jennifer Keller, is board-certified in obstetrics and gynecology and a professor at The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences.
Kathryn Marko, is a board-certified obstetrician and gynecologist at The GW Medical Faculty Associates and an assistant professor of Obstetrics & Gynecology at GW School of Medicine and Health Sciences.
