NEW YORK CITY — We’re two years into a post-Roe America, and the real effects have taken hold. It's what many of us knew would happen.
A new study published in JAMA Pediatrics found that there was a 7% rise in infant mortality rates in the 18 months following the Supreme Court ruling on Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization. There was a 10% increase in deaths of infants with underlying conditions.
The United States has also seen an increase in pregnancy-related deaths since 2019. Most of these deaths are thought to be preventable. Complications disproportionately affect Black women, who are three times more likely to die giving birth than white women.
Hundreds of infants died. Hundreds of women had to experience pregnancy – a physically demanding, emotionally exhausting feat – only to be faced with profound grief.
Meanwhile, hospitals are closing maternity wards and doctors are being driven from states with intense abortion restrictions, leading to maternity care........