Here’s what Florida can do to solve the Black maternal health crisis

The Tampa Bay area is celebrating Black Maternal Health Week, which is Thursday to April 17, for the first time. Only a few Florida cities are publicly observing this national public health event despite the Black maternal health crisis statewide.

Created by the Black Mamas Matter Alliance in response to the maternal health crisis in the United States, Black Maternal Health Week has been celebrated by organizations and states nationwide since 2018. Despite spending more money per capita on maternal health than any other high-income country worldwide, the United States has the highest rates of maternal morbidity and mortality.

In Florida, the Black-white disparity in pregnancy-related mortality doubled between 2010 and 2020. For every white woman or birthing person who survives the birth of their child, four Black mamas do not.

Black maternal health is worsening in Florida, and the first step to ending the maternal health crisis is acknowledging it. As a coalition of Black women, femmes, nonbinary and gender-expansive folks in Florida, we at Black in Repro advocate for a Florida that enables Black people to thrive and care for their communities. Collectively, we must combat the disproportionate burden of death and disease from pregnancy and increase maternal health research and initiatives, such as Black Maternal Health Week, to uplift the Black communities’ health and well-being.

The reproductive justice framework created by Black women in 1994 underscores how the reproductive rights movement excluded the lived realities of Black women and queer communities. While Black women wanted access to abortion, they also wanted to have access to supportive environments to become pregnant, give birth and parent their children in safe and sustainable communities. Right now, this reality is under threat in Florida. Not only are pregnancy-capable people denied access to abortion when they want and need it, but Black folks are suffering and dying from pregnancy more than their counterparts.

Black Maternal Health Week also calls attention to severe maternal morbidity. Severe maternal morbidity, representing the most severe, life-threatening pregnancy complications, also disproportionately affects Black communities in Florida. In 2020, the rate of severe maternal morbidity was nearly twice as high in Black individuals as in white individuals.

These complications are more pronounced when Black communities also experience structural barriers to health and health care. Barriers include a lack of health insurance, unemployment or low wages, distance from available health services, a lack of birth support and parental leave policies, and unsafe or unstable housing.

The racial inequities in maternal health are evident. However, we must also center the other Black individuals who are pushed to the margins of society. Centering in this movement means we must include Black pregnant and birthing people who identify as genderqueer or gender expansive, those with disabilities, poor people, immigrants and non-English speakers, among others. In the words of Black feminist writer Audre Lorde, “There is no such thing as a single-issue struggle because we do not live single-issue lives.”

To mitigate the Black maternal health crisis in Florida, state officials must prioritize the well-being of Black mothers and birthing people and work toward a future where every pregnancy is met with the highest standard of care and support. This includes substantive improvements to remove existing barriers to care, addressing statewide shortcomings in Medicaid coverage and other forms of financial assistance during the perinatal period, and uplifting the most vulnerable among us.

There are many solutions to end the Black maternal mortality crisis in the U.S. Officials and policymakers can support legislation, such as the Momnibus Act sponsored by the Black Maternal Health Caucus. The Momnibus Act includes a robust package of 13 individual bills to address economic, social and health factors that drive racial inequities in pregnancy-related outcomes.

Additionally, there are multipronged approaches that providers and state and local officials can engage in, like standardization of emergency procedures and CDC-funded Maternal Mortality Review Committees that comprehensively review pregnancy-related deaths.

Black Maternal Health Week also presents an opportunity to celebrate the beauty and joy of birthing while Black. This year’s theme, Our Bodies Still Belong to Us: Reproductive Justice NOW!, is a bold declaration in the face of reproductive oppression and abortion bans across the country, including Florida’s six-week ban that harms Black communities. The theme highlights the connection between our freedom and our ability to self-determine if and when we become pregnant and give birth.

We are calling on Black communities, churches, clubs and social groups, local organizations and businesses, individuals and advocates to contact their local city, county or municipal government and request they observe Black Maternal Health Week by presenting a proclamation declaring April 11-17 of each year as Black Maternal Health Week. Additionally, communities and their local government can observe the occasion by hosting events, inviting discussions from the community and speakers committed to health equity and reproductive justice, and ensuring opportunities for Black communities to connect and resources in the community to assist them throughout pregnancy and birth.

Next year, we expect to see (at least) all 22 metropolitan areas in Florida celebrating with us as we uplift Black Maternal Health Week. Our well-being lies in access to the information, services and resources to support healthy pregnancy and birth. Actively supporting Black Maternal Health Week is a necessary step toward saving Black lives statewide.

Rachel Logan is a research specialist at the University of California, San Francisco, and research chairperson for Black in Repro. She lives in Hillsborough County. Vickie Dugat, a post-doctoral researcher in Hillsborough and research committee member in Black in Repro, advocates for Black Maternal Health Equity. Dorian S. Odems is a post-doctoral scholar at the University of California, Davis, and a Black in Repro research committee member who lives in Hillsborough. Vivian Alana Caesar serves as the Florida Watch Black Constituency Communications Fellow and Black in Repro communications consultant. Black in Repro, a work group in the Floridians for Reproductive Freedom coalition, aims to build a network of Black Floridians committed to a reproductive justice framework that drives policy and produces sustainable change for the Black community. The email is blackinreproflorida@gmail.com.

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