Maternal Mortality

Related Pages
NCHS released maternal mortality statistics for 2018, an extensive review of data quality, and new coding procedures for death certificates based on this review.

Key 2018 Findings
  • For 2018, the maternal mortality rate is 17.4 per 100,000 live births in the United States.

Image showing 17.4 deaths per 100,000 women

  • Wide racial and ethnic gaps exist between non-Hispanic black (37.3 deaths per 100,000 live births), non-Hispanic white (14.9), and Hispanic (11.8) women.

Image showing the racial disparities of maternal mortality

  • New coding procedures—including how to use a checkbox that helps identify deaths related to pregnancy—improve the accuracy of maternal mortality estimates.

Improving Maternal Mortality Visual Abstract image

Detailed Evaluation of Changes in Data Collection Methods
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Data Files and Resources
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Frequently Asked Questions
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Implementation of New Coding Methods
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Maternal Mortality Reports
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Contact NCHS
CDC info
Page last reviewed: June 9, 2021
Content source: National Center for Health Statistics