After the launch of an initiative to reduce maternal mortality in California, which focused on preventing death caused by hemorrhage and preeclampsia, the maternal death rate fell from an average of 13.1 per 100,000 live births from 2005 to 2009 to 7.0 between 2011 and 2013, according to new research in Health Affairs.
Though maternal mortality rates fell for both black and white mothers, the gap between the two remained. In other words, maternal mortality rates for black mothers were still three to four times higher.
