The rate at which pregnant women start receiving prenatal care during their first trimester declined between 2021 and 2024, as did the rate of pregnant women who received late or no care.
Meanwhile, the rate at which pregnant women initiated prenatal care during their second trimester rate rose.
These figures come from a new data brief from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics.
Highlights from the CDC’s findings, taken directly from the report, include:
- After increasing from 2016 (77.1%) to 2021 (78.3%), prenatal care beginning in the first trimester decreased to 75.5% in 2024.
- From 2021 to 2024, care beginning in the second trimester increased from 15.4% to 17.3%, and late or no care increased from 6.3% to 7.3%.
- From 2021 to 2024, prenatal care beginning in the first trimester decreased, while care beginning in the second trimester and late or no care increased, for all maternal age groups.
- First trimester prenatal care decreased, while second trimester prenatal care and late or no care increased, for nearly all race and Hispanic-origin groups from 2021 to 2024.
- From 2021 to 2024, late or no care increased in 36 states and the District of Columbia.
Lack of prenatal care can be especially common in areas served by community safety-net hospitals, where many residents are uninsured and communities often suffer from a lack of accessible primary care.
Learn more from the CDC data brief “Changes in Timing of Prenatal Care Initiation: United States, 2021–2024” and from the AP report “Early prenatal care, considered best for moms and babies, is on the decline in the US.”
