Evaluating disparities in access to obstetric services for American Indian women across Montana.

ABSTRACT:

Purpose

Pregnant women across the rural United States have increasingly limited access to obstetric care, especially specialty care for high-risk women and infants. Limited research focuses on access for rural American Indian/Alaskan Native (AIAN) women, a population warranting attention given persistent inequalities in birth outcomes.

Methods

Using Montana birth certificate data (2014-2018), we examined variation in travel time to give birth and access to different levels of obstetric care (i.e., the proportion of individuals living within 1- and 2-h drives to facilities), by rurality (Rural-Urban Continuum Code) and race (White and AIAN people).

Findings

Results point to limited obstetric care access in remote rural areas in Montana, especially higher-level specialt

SUBMITTER: Thorsen ML 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8458487 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature