Virginia’s new data dashboards aim to boost mother and child health

Virginia on Thursday launched several new dashboards aimed at providing expecting mothers with additional resources during pregnancy, birth and postpartum periods by offering data on maternal mortality and pregnancy-associated deaths.

Managed by the Division of Population Health Data within VDH’s Office of Family Health Services, the Maternal and Child Health Dashboard displays metrics on preterm births, birthweight, infant mortality, prenatal care and maternal smoking. The data is sorted by year, region, health district, locality and race.

Two other dashboards use information from the Office of Vital Records to focus on maternal mortality and pregnancy-associated deaths — both provide data in five-year groupings and display statistics by selected demographic groups.

“Today’s launch is another key step to provide the data needed for this all-hands-on-deck mission. We are making significant strides, but we will not stop working until every baby in Virginia is born to a healthy mom,” Gov. Glenn Youngkin said in a Thursday press release.

The average maternal mortality rate in the United States is 18.6 deaths per 100,000 pregnancies, according to the Centers for Disease and Control and Prevention.

Virginia has a slightly above-average maternal mortality rate, 24.5 per 100,000 live births in 2024, down nearly 50% from 2021 when the rate was 49 per 100,000, according to a report by the Virginia Department of Health.

States like Mississippi, New Mexico, and Louisiana have higher maternal mortality rates than the national average, with rates exceeding 60 deaths per 100,000 births, while California and Massachusetts had lower rates, closer to 10 per 100,000 births. 

“Pregnancy and new motherhood should be a sacred time in the life of a mom and her baby. Last year, for more than 20 women and their families, it was a time of tragedy and loss,” Virginia Sec. Janet V. Kelly of Health and Human Resources said in a press release. “With accurate, actionable data we can help providers all across the Commonwealth do more to support healthy babies and healthy mothers and prevent these tragedies in the future.”

The new dashboards are part of an initiative to strengthen maternal health in the commonwealth by improving data, expanding access to high-quality care, and increasing awareness response to under an executive directive Youngkin signed last year.