Our Health Care System Fails Black Mothers and Babies

And systemic and structural racism is to blame

Here are the facts: Black infants have 2.3 times the infant mortality rate as white infants and Black women who receive prenatal care — the quality of care notwithstanding — are more likely to lose their babies than white women.

Writer Allison Gaines examines this disparity and failure of the health care system that in 2020 makes giving birth a riskier experience for Black women. And, according to Gaines (and facts/statistics), systemic racism surrounding health care in this country is a threat to Black babies.

“Perhaps one of the first steps to addressing this discrepancy is providing more health care opportunities for marginalized groups of Americans. However, systematic racism is like cancer,” Gaines writes for An Injustice. “Sometimes, administering treatment to one area will not heal the patient. Even if all Americans received health care, Black babies would continue to die at a disproportionate rate because racism is a factor.”

The American Healthcare System Is Failing Black Infants