Research Alert: August 10, 2022

Spatial Access to Hospital-based Obstetric Units in Minoritized Racial/Ethnic Areas

Travel burdens to reach a hospital with obstetric units vary. This report looks at spatial access to hospital-based obstetric units in minoritized racial/ethnic areas.

Key Findings

• Over two-thirds of rural ZIP code tabulation areas (ZCTAs) are more than 15 miles away from their nearest hospital obstetric unit and 27.2% of rural ZCTAs are over 30 miles away. In contrast, less than 9% of urban ZCTAs are over 30 miles from a hospital obstetric unit.
• In urban ZCTA areas with high proportions of American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) residents, 34.1% had no hospital-based obstetric unit within 15 miles, and this number increased to 80.2% in rural AI/AN areas.
• Approximately one third of rural ZCTAs with highly represented Hispanic/Latino populations have no obstetric care within 30 miles. This is similar to highly represented White rural communities. However, rural Hispanic/Latino minoritized racial/ethnic group (MRG) areas have much higher uninsured rates than rural areas highly represented by White residents or those without MRGs.
• Results suggest that Black-White maternal health disparities might be independent of distances to a hospital obstetric unit at the community level and instead associated with the social determinants of health.

Additional Resources of Interest:

• More information about the Rural and Minority Health Research Center
• More information from the Rural Health Information Hub's topic guides: Healthcare Access, Long-Term Care Facilities, Rural Health Disparities