This is Not New: Addressing America\u27s Maternal Mortality Crisis

This article utilizes an intersectional approach to examine the causes and realities of the dismal state of pregnancy-related healthcare in the United States, highlighting the disparate impact on Black pregnant people. The enslavementand brutalization of Black women in the U.S. demonstrates how American society systematically devalues Black health, especially reproductive health. The impacts of this horrific history persist today, resulting in the American healthcare system utterly failing Black mothers and pregnant people of all gender identities. This article surveys this history and presents policy solutions to improve maternal health outcomes for all, but especially Black individuals, including proposed pieces of legislation, implicit bias training, and stricter standards for data collection