Access to maternal health is shrinking across the country. Health experts say rural areas are getting the short end of the stick.

DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) - Access to maternal health is shrinking across the country. Health experts say rural areas are getting the short end of the stick. 

"We now have 2.6 million reproductive-age women living in rural communities without labor and delivery services available locally," said Dr. Julia Interrante at the University of Minnesota's Rural Health Research Center. 

For many families living in central Illinois, the closest maternity unit is hours away. There are many barriers to healthcare access in rural communities that impact pregnancies.

"There are fewer clinicians and hospitals. There are also structural challenges like distance to care, transportation and having fewer doctors and nurses working in rural areas. And all of these really do contribute to the poor maternal and infant health outcomes," Interrante said.  

In rural areas, limited access to obstetrics is caused by a lower volume of patients. Hospitals get paid for the number of patients who give birth in their facility. 

"So, rural hospitals, maintaining obstetrics services, there's a very high fixed cost, including keeping doctors and nurses on staff, having the correct training and equipment. And it can be really difficult to cover those fixed costs when you have a smaller volume of births happening at a hospital," Interrante said.  

Residents are also facing geographical barriers. Dr. Karen Tabb Dina is a professor at the University of Illinois School of Social Work. She said rural health care settings are experiencing a demographic shift.

"Imagine having limited access to health care based on geographic barriers. And then you also do not engage with the language of the clinic ... we have a large group of non-English speaking recent migrants," Dina said.  

Experts say the majority of maternal deaths in the U.S. are considered preventable. Doctors are calling on policymakers to provide more programs and infrastructure for rural patients.

"We are more than a decade into the severe maternal health crisis in the U.S., and policymakers are well aware of the challenges and the lack of access in rural communities. And yet we still see fewer and fewer hospitals offering separate care every year," Interrante said.  

I-Promote-IL is a maternal health resource bundle for residents aiming to improve the health of pregnant and postpartum people. 

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