There are racial disparities in pregnancy-related deaths in the U.S: Black people are three times as likely to die of causes related to childbirth than white people. "We have to do better," said Dr. Allison Bryant of Mass General Brigham health system. The first year of the pandemic saw a surge of maternal deaths, and the greatest increase was among Black people, according to the CDC. Experts say the social foundation of these public health disparities have been known for decades. In 2020, increases in maternal deaths among Black and Hispanic people were statistically significant, researchers said, while the increase among white people was not, and the risk of death increased with age. Why is this happening? Experts say the racial disparity stems from a confluence of factors including systemic racism and inequity, bias in medicine and a lack of health resources. Read more about #BlackMaternalHealthWeek at the link in our bio.