Improving Our Maternity Care Through Doula Support

This report highlights how doula support can make a critical difference in improving outcomes for pregnant and birthing people and their babies. As the maternal health crisis continues to escalate – especially in communities of color – this analysis underscores how important doulas could be as part of the solution — a solution that an increasing number of birthing families are eager to access, if only doulas were available and affordable.

Historic Investments in Good Infrastructure Jobs Can't Leave Women Behind

The bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), which provides $550 billion in historic new investments in transportation, communications, clean water and energy, and more, is estimated to add nearly 800,000 jobs to the economy annually.

This offers a critical opportunity to increase women's access to quality, well-paying jobs – but only if federal and state investments are implemented with gender and racial equity in mind.

Threats on All Fronts

Abortion access goes hand in hand with policies like Medicaid coverage, including in the postpartum period, and economic policies that support the ability to both work and care for oneself and one's family, including paid family and medical leave, paid sick days, fair pay, raising the minimum wage, pregnancy accommodations, and fair scheduling. Each of these policies is necessary to provide the foundation for women and their families to thrive.

State Abortion Bans Could Harm Nearly 15 Million Women of Color

The Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization decision means 26 states are certain or likely to ban abortion. Our analysis, building on work by In Our Own Voice and Planned Parenthood, finds that Black and Native American women are the most likely to live in these 26 states and are thus especially harmed by Dobbs. Women with disabilities, women veterans, and women who are economically insecure are also disproportionately likely to live in these states.

Improving Our Maternity Care Now Through Community Birth Settings

More pregnant people are taking control of their childbirth experience by choosing to birth in a community setting such as birth centers and planned home births.

Research shows that care provided in community birth settings can make a concrete difference in improving maternity care quality and producing better outcomes, including for People of Color.

Saving the Lives of Moms and Babies

We've joined the National Birth Equity Collaborative to produce a series of resources that connects the dots between how different socioeconomic factors affect maternal and infant health, the outsize impact these factors have on BIPOC communities, and recommendations to effect the change we need to ensure all moms and babies thrive.

Choosing Health Equity

Choosing Health Equity was designed to surface the numerous decision points that exist in the cycle of health care research, policy and practice — to disrupt standard processes in order to achieve a healthier, equitable, and just society.

Explore the tools and resources today.

Improving Our Maternity Care Now

The U.S. maternity care system fails to provide many childbearing people and newborns with equitable, respectful, safe, effective, and affordable care. More people die per capita as a result of pregnancy and childbirth in this country than in any other high-income country.

This report lifts up four care models decisionmakers must implement for healthier moms and babies.

Too many Black women are dying in pregnancy and childbirth

We need systemic change to end this crisis and ensure communities are healthier and more responsive to Black women's needs.

Click the link below to learn more about the disparities and how we can help Black women have the safe and healthy pregnancies and childbirth they deserve.