DHSS Shares Missouri’s Annual Maternal Mortality Report

Today, the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services published “A Multi-year Look at Maternal Mortality: 2019-2023 Annual Report” on behalf of the state’s Pregnancy-Associated Mortality Review Board, a multidisciplinary board of experts from across the state tasked with examining the causes and contributing factors associated with maternal mortality and ultimately forming recommendations that could prevent these deaths from occurring in the future. 

An average of 68 Missouri women died while pregnant or within one year of pregnancy each year over five years (2019-2023), with the highest number recorded in 2020 (85 deaths). The top three leading causes of death did not change from last year’s report: cardiovascular disease, mental health conditions and infection. Other key findings include the following.

• The pregnancy-related mortality ratio was 31.2 deaths per 100,000 live births.  
• The PRMR for Black women was 61.9 deaths per 100,000 live births, 2.5 times the PRMR for white women. This rate is similar to the 2024 and 2025 reports.
• The PRMR for Medicaid enrollees was 2.9 times the ratio of those with private insurance.  
• All pregnancy-related deaths due to mental health conditions, including substance use disorder, were determined to be preventable. Seventy-nine percent of all pregnancy-related deaths were determined to be preventable. 

The Missouri Hospital Association sponsors the Missouri Perinatal Quality Collaborative in association with DHSS. The MO PQC provides access to evidence-based initiatives, technical support, education and resources to support the reduction of severe maternal and infant morbidity and mortality. Quality improvement collaboratives, which align with key MO PAMR findings and recommendations, are deployed for more complex topics and are designed to result in highly reliable processes and improved care outcomes.