A Call To Address The Political Determinants Of Perinatal Mental Health

Health Affairs August 23, 2024
Amalia Londoño Tobón, Obianuju O. Berry, Sasha Gorelik, Hye Sung Ryou, Nancy Byatt, Karla Cardoza, Camille A. Clare, Ariadna Forray, Thomas I. Mackie, Alejandra Hurtado de Mendoza, Darius Tandon, Wanjikū F.M. Njoroge

The US is confronting a perinatal mental health crisis rooted in policies and endemic racism that have significant negative impact on perinatal women and people, especially those from racial-ethnic minoritized backgrounds (note 1). This commentary provides context for the findings of the Health Affairs study by Sarah Haight and colleagues describing racial-ethnic disparities in perinatal mental health by focusing on drivers of these inequities and offering recommendations to address them.

The recent 20-year update report “Ending Unequal Treatment” by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine highlights the persistent morbidity and mortality disparities among those from racial-ethnic minoritized communities. Mortality disproportionately impacts racial-ethnic minoritized perinatal women and people, with discrimination being a key factor associated with mortality. Furthermore, during...

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