For the fourth year in a row, the United States has earned a D+ on the March of Dimes Report Card, a stark signal that the nation’s maternal and infant health system remains “dangerously stalled.” Nearly 380,000 babies were born too soon in 2024, leaving the national preterm birth rate stuck at 10.4 percent and placing the U.S. among the highest of developed nations for this measure.
Behind that stagnant average, the report describes widening racial disparities that fall hardest on families of color. Preterm birth rates among babies born to Black moms and birthing people climbed to 14.7 percent, now nearly one and a half times higher than the rate for babies overall. The report notes that Black, American Indian/Alaska Native, and Pacific Islander moms and birthing people still die at two to three times the rate of White moms and birthing people, with more than 30,000 experiencing severe complications each year.
“These data are deeply frustrating,” said Dr. Michael Warren, March of Dimes Chief Medical and Health Officer, who points to “unequal access to care” alongside chronic disease as longstanding risk factors that continue to fuel disparities. Cindy Rahman, President and CEO of March of Dimes, warns that “our country is stuck in a maternal and infant health crisis where too many families are being forgotten” and calls for confronting “systemic inequities that leave families of color and those covered by Medicaid at higher risk.”
The organization argues that tackling structural racism, expanding Medicaid coverage, and improving access to early prenatal care and community-based supports are essential to giving every mom and baby “the chance for a healthy start.”
See: “US Earns D+ for Fourth Year in March of Dimes 2025 Report Card” (November 17, 2025)
