Mortality Rate Higher for Black Moms Than White Moms in Mississippi, Study Says

Black people make up about 38% of Mississippi's population, but a new study shows that Black women were four times more likely to die of causes directly related to pregnancy than white women in the state in 2020. "It is imperative that this racial inequity is not only recognized, but that concerted efforts are made at the institutional, community, and state levels to reduce these disparate outcomes," wrote Dr. Michelle Owens and Dr. Courtney Mitchell, leaders of the Maternal Mortality Review Committee that conducted the study.