For many expecting mothers in Alabama, finding a healthcare facility to give birth is a challenge. But the shutdown of three maternity units might just make it more difficult.
NBC News reported that by the end of October, two maternity wards will close, and a third will close just a few weeks later. The closing of these facilities leave woman across Shelby and Monroe counties without any birthing units.
“There’s a sense of dread knowing that there’s going to be families who are now not only driving to the county over, but driving through three counties,” Honour McDaniel, director of maternal and infant health initiatives for the March of Dimes in Alabama told NBC News.
The shuttering of these units is complicated by the fact that neighboring counties also lack maternity care units. In some instances, women wouldn't just need to drive over to the next county, but possibly as much as 100 miles to find the closest facility for care.
More:In rural America, maternal health care is vanishing. These moms are most at risk.
One of the highest maternal mortality rates in the country
In August, the Milken Institute, a non-profit think tank, released a study that found that Alabama had the highest maternal mortality rate in the country. The study also revealed that overall maternal mortality rate was over 64 deaths per 100,000 births, almost double the nationwide average.
Data from the Centers for Disease Control also shows that Alabama had one of the highest maternal mortality rates between 2018 and 2021.
That figure is even higher for Black women with over 100 out of every 100,000 birthday resulting in death.
It's not just mothers who are at risk of negative consequences due to lack of accessible maternal care in the state. As of 2021, the latest year where data was available, Alabama had the third highest infant mortality rate, according to the CDC.
The units shuttering have attributed the closures to staff shortages and lack of funds, NBC News reported.
More:Millions of Americans live in maternity care deserts. Access continues to worsen, report shows.
Increased need for maternal care
The shuttering of these facilities comes at a time when it's expected that more obstetrics care will be needed after the state banned abortions last June.
Alabama's abortion laws don't have an exception for rape or incest but do allow abortions if the mother's health is at risk, or the fetus is not expected to survive.
The limitations on abortion could mean more women giving birth who are in need of easy to access maternal care.
Doctors at the hospitals closing are concerned that this means worse outcomes for women and children.
Dr. Jesanna Cooper is an OB-GYN who formerly worked at Princeton Baptist Medical Center which is a Birmingham hospital closing its maternity services. Dr. Cooper tells NBC News that she's concerned people are going to start showing up at the emergency room to give birth.
“If you show up with a very premature baby and deliver in the ER, and you don’t have a NICU and you don’t have an obstetrics team, things aren’t going to go well," Cooper said.
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Maternity units closing in Alabama: Pregnant women have to travel further for care - USA TODAY
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