A new report finds many women in Georgia do not have nearby access to maternity care and birthing facilities.
The March of Dimes’ “2026 Maternity Care Deserts” report finds one in two Georgia counties are considered maternity care deserts, impacting nearly 158,000 women and 10,000 births each year.
According to the report, nearly 65% of counties in Georgia do not have a birthing facility.
About 159,000 women in the state live more than 30 minutes from a hospital with labor and delivery services.
The report says increased travel distances are associated with delayed entry into prenatal care, a greater likelihood of unplanned out-of-hospital deliveries, higher rates of maternal morbidity and increased neonatal intensive care unit admissions.