New Survey by Stagwell (STGW)'s The Harris Poll Reveals
Urgent Concerns Regarding Access and Quality of Maternal Healthcare
in the U.S.
NEW
YORK, June 21, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Harris
Poll, a Stagwell Agency, recently released its second annual State
of Maternal Health Report, highlighting alarming challenges around
maternal healthcare in the United
States. With the 2nd anniversary of the Supreme
Court's Dobbs decision overturning Roe v. Wade approaching, the
survey results are even more striking - revealing significant
disparities in the care pregnant women receive and their
experiences with the healthcare system.
The survey, conducted online in April of 2024 among more than
1,000 U.S. women aged 18+, identified that a worrying proportion of
women believe they must fight to receive the medical care they
need, with more than half of women (53%) agreeing with this
sentiment. Furthermore, roughly 2 in 5 women who are pregnant or
have been pregnant (39%) say they experienced challenges to
accessing care during pregnancy and childbirth. Access to care
issues appear even more pronounced among younger women aged 18-34
(who are most likely to have recently experienced pregnancy or to
be currently pregnant), women residing in the South, employed
women, and mothers with children under 18.
Not being able to access such important care can negatively
impact the entire pregnancy journey, from experiences to outcomes.
Other findings from the survey surrounding care quality
include:
- Only 42% of women who are currently pregnant/have ever been
pregnant strongly feel they had access to the best possible care
when they were pregnant—a significant drop from 50% in 2022.
- Younger women are particularly affected, with less than a third
in the 18-34 age group (32%) strongly feeling they received the
best possible care.
- More than 1 in 10 women who have been pregnant say their
prenatal care (11%), labor care (12%), and delivery care (12%) were
less than adequate. About 1 in 7 (15%) say the same of their
recovery care, and a whopping 1 in 4 (24%) say the same of their
postpartum care.
- About 1 in 7 women who've been pregnant (14%) did not feel
heard by their provider during their prenatal care visits.
"The data clearly show that not only are many women feeling
disregarded and underserved by our healthcare system during one of
the most vulnerable times in their lives, but there is also an
overwhelming demand for immediate improvements to ensure the safety
and well-being of all mothers in America," said Christina Lojek, Research Manager, The Harris
Poll. "Furthermore, the results confirm that access to care
and care quality issues are becoming more prevalent, and depending
on which state you live in, you could be more at risk," she
stated.
Notably, two-thirds of women (67%) expressed concerns that the
current political climate is exacerbating the risks associated with
pregnancy and childbirth, and perhaps rightfully so. Women across
the U.S. are demanding change - a vast majority (83%) state that
more needs to be done to ensure safer pregnancy and birthing
conditions in the U.S., with 45% strongly endorsing this
view.
When thinking about access and quality of care in the current
political environment, location matters. Looking at women who live
in states with the most restrictive reproductive health policies*,
they are significantly more likely than those who live in
protective states to share negative experiences and sentiments
surrounding pregnancy and childbirth care:
- Women in the most restrictive states are significantly more
likely to feel like they have to fight to get the medical care they
need than women who live in protective states (58% vs. 49%).
- Among women who are currently pregnant/have ever been pregnant:
- Those in the most restrictive states are significantly less
likely to strongly feel they had access to the best possible care
when pregnant than those who live in protective states (38% vs.
50%).
- Nearly half of those in the most restrictive states (48%) say
they experienced challenges to accessing care during pregnancy and
childbirth, compared to less than a third (31%) of those in
protective states, and are about twice as likely to report
insurance-related barriers (20% vs. 11%).
- Among women who have been pregnant:
- Those in the most restrictive states are more than twice as
likely as those in protective states to cite less than adequate
prenatal (17% vs. 7%) and labor (19% vs. 9%) care.
- Those in the most restrictive states are twice as likely to say
they did not feel heard by their provider during prenatal care
visits as women who live in protective states (20% vs. 9%), and
more than 4 times as likely to strongly feel this way (9% vs.
2%).
In light of these findings, there is a clear call to action for
healthcare providers, policymakers, and community leaders to take
decisive measures towards reforming maternal healthcare practices
and policies. Ensuring that all pregnant women have access to the
highest standard of care needs to be an urgent public health
priority.
*Definitions for states' reproductive health policies were
derived from Guttmacher Institute. Most restrictive states
include Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North
Dakota, Oklahoma,
South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, and West
Virginia. Protective states include Alaska, California, Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New
Jersey, New Mexico,
New York, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington.
Survey Method:
The 2024 State of Maternal Health survey was conducted online in
the U.S. by The Harris Poll April 2-4,
2024 among 2,061 U.S. adults ages 18+, among whom 1,116 are
women, and 701 are women who are currently pregnant or have ever
been pregnant. The sampling precision of Harris online polls is measured by using a
Bayesian credible interval. For this study, the sample data
is accurate to within +/- 2.5 percentage points using a 95%
confidence level. This credible interval will be wider among
subsets of the surveyed population of interest. For complete survey
methodology, including weighting variables and subgroup sample
sizes, please contact christina.lojek@harrispoll.com.
About The Harris Poll
The Harris Poll is a global
consulting and market research firm that strives to reveal the
authentic values of modern society to inspire leaders to create a
better tomorrow. It works with clients in three primary areas:
building twenty-first-century corporate reputation, crafting brand
strategy and performance tracking, and earning organic media
through public relations research. One of the longest-running
surveys in the U.S., The Harris Poll has tracked public opinion,
motivations and social sentiment since 1963, and is now part of
Stagwell, the challenger holding company built to transform
marketing. To learn more, please visit
www.theharrispoll.com
Contact:
Christina Lojek
christina.lojek@harrispoll.com
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SOURCE Stagwell Inc.