Deaths from pregnancy and childbirth in the United States have doubled in the past 20 years, a development that a human rights group called "scandalous and disgraceful" Friday.
In addition, the rights group said, about 1.7 million women a year, one-third of pregnant women in the United States, suffer from pregnancy-related complications.
Most of the deaths and complications occur among minorities and women living in poverty, it noted.
Quite a damning indictment of the ‘best health care system in the world’, where they cannot look after their pregnant women.
Amnesty International issued a report Friday that calls on President Obama to take action.
"This country's extraordinary record of medical advancement makes its haphazard approach to maternal care all the more scandalous and disgraceful," said Larry Cox, executive director of Amnesty International USA.
"Good maternal care should not be considered a luxury available only to those who can access the best hospitals and the best doctors. Women should not die in the richest country on earth from preventable complications and emergencies," Cox said in a news release.
But then Amnesty has been on USA’s case before, they have condemned the use of death penalty in USA as against human rights, as a violation of basic rights. That indictment was ignored; I assume this one will be ignored as well.
The report, "Deadly Delivery: The Maternal Health Care Crisis in the USA," notes that the lifetime risk of maternal deaths is greater in the United States than in 40 other countries, including virtually all industrialized nations.
Well, I used to claim that life expectancy in USA is just about lowest among the developed countries, infant mortality is just about the highest. Now we know that deaths during pregnancy and childbirth are just about the highest in USA among developed countries.
The report also noted that severe pregnancy-related complications that nearly cause death -- known as "near misses" -- have increased by 25 percent since 1998.
And here is the shocking part.
Up to 40 percent of near misses are considered preventable with better quality of care, according to a 2007 study in the American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology.
This again comes down to the lack of preventive care. In this forum we have been discussing the ill effects of user fee; I have outlined plenty of them. Add one more to it, user fees will probably result in increased maternal deaths.
Minorities, women living in poverty, Native Americans, immigrants and those who speak little or no English are particularly affected, Amnesty International said.
"The thing that really struck us was that these problems hit women of color, low-income, particularly hard," said Nan Strauss, researcher and co-author of the Amnesty report. "But every woman who is going through pregnancy in this country is at risk."
The best health care system in the world? USA can keep it; we don’t want it here in Canada.
Doubling of maternal deaths in U.S. 'scandalous,' rights group says - CNN.com
In addition, the rights group said, about 1.7 million women a year, one-third of pregnant women in the United States, suffer from pregnancy-related complications.
Most of the deaths and complications occur among minorities and women living in poverty, it noted.
Quite a damning indictment of the ‘best health care system in the world’, where they cannot look after their pregnant women.
Amnesty International issued a report Friday that calls on President Obama to take action.
"This country's extraordinary record of medical advancement makes its haphazard approach to maternal care all the more scandalous and disgraceful," said Larry Cox, executive director of Amnesty International USA.
"Good maternal care should not be considered a luxury available only to those who can access the best hospitals and the best doctors. Women should not die in the richest country on earth from preventable complications and emergencies," Cox said in a news release.
But then Amnesty has been on USA’s case before, they have condemned the use of death penalty in USA as against human rights, as a violation of basic rights. That indictment was ignored; I assume this one will be ignored as well.
The report, "Deadly Delivery: The Maternal Health Care Crisis in the USA," notes that the lifetime risk of maternal deaths is greater in the United States than in 40 other countries, including virtually all industrialized nations.
Well, I used to claim that life expectancy in USA is just about lowest among the developed countries, infant mortality is just about the highest. Now we know that deaths during pregnancy and childbirth are just about the highest in USA among developed countries.
The report also noted that severe pregnancy-related complications that nearly cause death -- known as "near misses" -- have increased by 25 percent since 1998.
And here is the shocking part.
Up to 40 percent of near misses are considered preventable with better quality of care, according to a 2007 study in the American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology.
This again comes down to the lack of preventive care. In this forum we have been discussing the ill effects of user fee; I have outlined plenty of them. Add one more to it, user fees will probably result in increased maternal deaths.
Minorities, women living in poverty, Native Americans, immigrants and those who speak little or no English are particularly affected, Amnesty International said.
"The thing that really struck us was that these problems hit women of color, low-income, particularly hard," said Nan Strauss, researcher and co-author of the Amnesty report. "But every woman who is going through pregnancy in this country is at risk."
The best health care system in the world? USA can keep it; we don’t want it here in Canada.
Doubling of maternal deaths in U.S. 'scandalous,' rights group says - CNN.com