While maternal deaths are increasing overall in the U.S., the issue is particularly critical in Texas, which has the highest rate of childbirth-related deaths in the country, according to STAT.
In fact, Texas' maternal death rate, at 35.8 per 100,000 live births in 2014, is higher than any other developed country in the world, according to the report. The death rates are especially high among African American women in Texas. While black women accounted for 11 percent of births in Texas in 2016, they accounted for 29 percent of maternal deaths, according to the report.
Texas Rep. Shawn Thierry, D, has made it her mission to address this issue, according to STAT. In July, she sponsored a bill that would direct Texas' Maternal Mortality and Morbidity Task Force to focus more research on why African American mothers face especially high death rates in Texas.
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