Mississippi, Gulf States receive F rating in March of Dimes’ 2021 maternal health report

by

Elana Klein

• Published on November 18, 2021 • Comments

Pregnancy stock file photo.
Sergio Santos/Creative Commons

Mississippi ranked toward the bottom in the nation for maternal and infant health outcomes in an annual report put out by March of Dimes, an organization that promotes maternal and infant health across the United States through research, education and advocacy.

In the advocacy group’s report card released Monday, Mississippi received an F rating, along with Alabama, Louisiana, Arkansas, South Carolina and West Virginia. The Magnolia State also had one of the highest infant mortality rates and preterm birth rates.

The criteria through which the grades are determined include, but are not limited to, an examination of states’ preterm birth and infant death rates, social vulnerability, low-risk cesarean births, state efforts on Medicaid expansion and extension, and policies related to doula and midwives.

Infant mortality

March of Dimes found Mississippi’s infant mortality rate to be 9.1 infant deaths per 1,000 live births, which is significantly higher than the national infant mortality rate of 5.6 deaths per 1,000 live births.

Mississippi holds the highest infant mortality rate in the Gulf South region. Louisiana’s infant mortality rate is slightly lower at 81. deaths per 1,000 live births, while Alabama’s is 7.9 deaths per 1,000 live births.

Preterm birth rates

In addition to its holistic rating, the organization assigns letter grades to denote a state’s preterm birth rate. Considering its low overall rating, Mississippi unsurprisingly performed poorly in this subcategory.

March of Dimes considers any preterm birth rate at or over 11.5% to constitute an F grade. Mississippi surpassed the group’s failing benchmark with a 14.2% preterm birth rate — the highest in of the three Gulf States, and also in the U.S. Alabama and Louisiana both have a preterm birth rate of 12.9%.

There are significant ethnic and racial disparities when it comes to the state’s preterm birth rates. At 17.1%, Black Mississippi women have a preterm birth that is 44% higher than that among all other women, according to March of Dimes. Asian/Pacific Islander and Hispanic Mississippi women hold the state’s lowest preterm birth rates – 8.2% and 10.3%, respectively. White Mississippi women have a preterm birth rate of 12.1%.

The data indicate that Hinds County has the highest preterm birth rate at 18%, whereas DeSoto County holds the lowest at 12.7%. The change in rate for most major counties in the state, however, has worsened compared to last year.

Social Vulnerability Index

March of Dimes uses a Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) — a number between 0 and 1 — to determine where a pregnant person is more likely to experience poor maternal or infant health outcomes. The factors that determine a given parish’s SVI are grouped into four categories: “socioeconomic status; household composition and disability; minority status and language; and housing type and transportation.”

Virtually every county in Mississippi was placed in the highest possible SVI category (0.6 - 1.0), indicating that poor health outcomes are highly likely for most pregnant Louisianans. Madison County was the only county assigned the lowest possible SVI category (0.0 - 0.29).

Similar to Mississippi, a vast majority of counties in Louisiana and Alabama fall in the highest SVI category.