WOONSOCKET, R.I. — CVS Health has announced as part of today’s Biden-Harris Maternal Health Call to Action Day it is advancing its commitment to addressing maternal health disparities with a $1.74 million investment. The funding will support initiatives led by America’s Essential Hospitals, Every Mother Counts and the National Association of Free & Charitable Clinics.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Black women in the U.S. are three times more likely to die due to pregnancy-related causes compared to white women. Overall, the U.S. has the highest maternal mortality rate among developed countries; 60 percent of those deaths are likely preventable.

Dr. Joneigh Khaldun

“We have an unwavering commitment to addressing the maternal health crisis that our country is facing – one of which disproportionally impacts Black women,” said , Chief Health Equity Officer, CVS Health. “We fully support the Administration’s efforts to address racial inequities in pregnancy and childbirth and to improve maternal health outcomes for all. We will continue to do our part by investing in community-based programs that help reduce maternal mortality in diverse populations so that every expectant mother receives the high quality of care they need and deserve.”

CVS Health’s $1.74M commitment to maternal health will support the following initiatives:

• Every Mother Counts: “Choices in Childbirth” ($650,000)
  A series of educational videos and resources that will empower expecting parents through their maternal care journey with the goal to improve maternal health and birth equity in the United States. The materials will become available on January 1, 2022.
• America’s Essential Hospitals: “Improving Obstetric Outcomes for Black Maternity Patients in Essential Hospitals” ($847,000 grant from the CVS Health Foundation)
  A new learning collaboration by America’s Essential Hospitals to reduce morbidity and mortality for women and improve their obstetric outcomes. It will include 12 hospitals across the country that have maternal mortality rates above the national average, especially among Black patients. The learning collaboration will launch in January 2022.
• National Association of Free & Charitable Clinics: Preeclampsia Prevention Initiative for Black Women ($250,000 grant from the CVS Health Foundation)
  A program implemented in nine clinics across the country that provides educational and clinical training for providers to help identify women at risk for preeclampsia, high blood pressure that comes on suddenly during pregnancy. Preeclampsia, which is 60 percent more common in Black women vs. white women, is a leading, preventable cause of severe maternal morbidity, maternal death, preterm birth, and low birthweight. CVS Health began donating low-dose aspirin, an intervention  recommended by medical societies that can reduce the risk of preeclampsia by more than 30 percent, for women at these clinics in July 2021.

As part of its commitment to addressing maternal health disparities, CVS Health is also donating 1,000 blood pressure monitoring machines to health care systems in counties that have some of the highest maternal mortality and morbidity numbers in the country. This donation is expected to impact 10,000 mothers each year that the new machines are in use.