The US ranks below all other developed countries in maternal mortality as a result of a focus on reactive care, according to a GlobalData analyst.
GlobalData medical analyst David Beauchamp said: "Maternal care is an incredibly important part of modern healthcare. Unfortunately, the US lags behind other developed countries in terms of the standard of care. A major problem in the US is the lack of patient-centred care and a focus on reactive instead of proactive care."
GlobalData is Medical Device Network's parent company.
Beauchamp was speaking following a panel discussion with industry experts about maternal health and the challenges facing the industry in the US, hosted at Toronto's Medtech Conference 2024 last month.
The National Center for Health Statistics (CDC) reported a maternal mortality rate (MMR) of 22.3 deaths per 100,000 live births in the US in 2022 compared with 32.9 in 2021 and 23.8 in 2020. This is considerably higher than the most recent data for all OECD countries, which saw an average MMR of 10.9 in 2020.
The CDC adheres to the World Health Organization's (WHO) definition of maternal death as "the death of a woman while pregnant or within 42 days of termination of pregnancy, irrespective of the duration and the site of the pregnancy, from any cause related to or aggravated by the pregnancy or its management, but not from accidental or incidental causes".
US health providers usually benefit from the availability of the highest standard of equipment. However, a series of obstacles prevent millions of US women from accessing life-saving care.
These include a shortage of caregivers nationwide, hospital closures and a lack of funding. Although the technologies exist - and exist across the US - they aren't always available for the women who need them.
Medical devices in maternal care is a sector that has seen significant growth over recent years, although the market remains relatively small. GlobalData is currently tracking 399 available products in the reproductive and maternal health sector, alongside an additional 43 in various stages of development worldwide.
There are additional socioeconomic obstacles. Millions of women in the US live in under-resourced locations, and the US Census Bureau identified that 11.9% of women were still living in poverty in 2022. For those struggling financially, taking time off work and paying for treatment can be difficult.
GlobalData also notes that the US exhibits a lower level of health awareness than other developed countries, especially regarding maternal health.