"Alabama Faces Maternity Unit Crisis as 3 Hospitals Prepare for Closure"

Three maternity units in Alabama are set to close, leaving two counties without any birthing hospitals and a predominantly Black neighborhood in Birmingham without a sought-after maternity unit. Pregnant women in these areas will have to travel longer distances to reach a hospital with obstetrics care, potentially leading to delays in emergency situations. Alabama already has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the country, and the closures will further exacerbate the challenges faced by pregnant women and babies. The closures come at a time when the need for obstetrics care is expected to rise due to the state's restrictive abortion laws. Financial challenges and staffing shortages are cited as reasons for the closures, highlighting the broken funding stream for women and children's healthcare. The loss of obstetric services in rural areas has been linked to increased rates of preterm births and low birth weight, contributing to infant mortality.