Leaders at the Alabama Medicaid Agency are hopeful that the state’s infant and maternal mortality rates, which are among the highest in the nation, will start to see improvements after several new initiatives begin rolling out this year.
“Alabama has routinely had high infant mortality rates compared to other states,” said AMA Commissioner Stephanie Azar, speaking with Alabama Daily News Thursday after a meeting of the agency’s Medical Care Advisory Committee in Montgomery.
“It had gotten a little better, (then) I believe the most recent numbers have shown it ticking up a little bit more, but the state of Alabama is initiating multiple initiatives to target that, and maternal health. A lot of infant mortality is tied directly to maternal health.”
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According to the most recent data, Alabama had an infant mortality rate of 7.8 deaths per 1,000 births in 2023, a more than 16% increase over the previous year, and more than 39% over the national rate of 5.6 per 1,000. Significant racial disparities among infant deaths were tracked as well, with Black infants more than twice as likely to perish within one year of life when compared to white infants.
Maternal mortality rates in Alabama aren’t much better. Between 2018 and 2019, the latest available data, there were 93 pregnancy-related deaths for a maternal mortality rate of 29.9 deaths per 100,000 births, more than 64% higher than the national rate of 18.2 per 100,000.
Both the state’s high infant and maternal mortality rates have generally been attributed by public health experts to poverty and a lack of access to health care.
EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written by Alexander Willis and originally published by Alabama Daily News.
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