New maternity care taskforce set up as black women 40% more likely to miscarry

The government has launched a new taskforce to explore the reasons behind disparities in maternity care.

It will look into why exactly women and their babies from ethnic minority communities and those from poorer neighbourhoods have worse outcomes.

Black women are 40% more likely to experience a miscarriage than white women, the Department of Health and Social Care said in the announcement.

There is also an almost 2-fold difference in mortality rates between women from Asian ethnic groups and white women 

Critics have noted the news comes on the same day that midwives called for an end to charging for services for migrant women amid safety fears.

The Royal College of Midwives has argued it the cost puts many people off seeking care because they cannot afford it.

Those who live in deprived areas can also have higher rates of stillbirths.

Birmingham, one of the most deprived areas of the country, has the highest rates of neonatal mortality and stillbirths at 11.4 per 1,000.

The latest figures show the country’s stillbirth rate has reduced by over 25% since 2010 and the neonatal mortality rate has reduced by 29%.

The government claims the reasons behind the remaining disparities are currently ‘unclear’.

The new taskforce is designed to identify barriers faced by women in different communities.

Minister for women’s health Maria Caulfield said: ‘For too long disparities have persisted which mean women living in deprived areas or from ethnic monitory backgrounds are less likely to get the care they need, and worse, lose their child.

‘We must do better to understand and address the causes of this.

‘The Maternity Disparities Taskforce will help level up maternity care across the country, bringing together a wide range of experts to deliver real and ambitious change so we can improve care for all women, and I will be monitoring progress closely.’

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