Group files open-records request for Texas’ delayed data on pregnancy-related deaths

A watchdog group has submitted a public records request demanding that Texas immediately release a major report on maternal mortality that state officials recently said they’ll delay until after the midterm elections.

The Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) originally had a Sept. 1 deadline for releasing the data, Texas’ first major update on pregnancy-related deaths in nine years. Instead, officials said they would make the numbers available next summer.

In its requests, Democracy Forward — a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit that combats anti-democratic actions by lawmakers — asks DSHS and the Texas Maternal Mortality & Morbidity Review Committee to release what data they have right now, arguing that Texans can’t afford to wait any longer.

“The Texas Legislature has a failed over a number of sessions to address the maternal health crisis in the state,” Democracy Forward CEO Skye Perryman told the Current. “It has failed to expand Medicaid, it has not expanded postpartum Medicaid to a sufficient amount and it has failed to address the health of women in a variety of respects.”

As reported by the Houston Chronicle, DSHS officials said they needed more time to align their methodology with that of other states. They also blamed staff shortfalls and budget woes for the delay.

The missed deadline comes as Texas’ near-total abortion ban and the state’s resistance to expanding Medicaid loom as potential election-year liabilities for Republican elected officials, including Gov. Greg Abbott.

Democracy Forward’s Perryman said the delay is inexcusable because the state report was expected to include recommendations for policymakers to help improve Texas’ maternal mortality record. Now, those won’t be available until after the end of the next legislative session, which starts in January.

Texas’ maternal mortality rate is the seventh-highest in the country, according to a USA Today investigation. What’s more, pregnant Black women in Texas die at around three times the rate of other women, according to existing state data.

“It is concerning when lawmakers want to withhold that information, and it’s also important that the people of Texas have access to evidence-based recommendations about things their lawmakers should be doing in order to protect and improve the lives of women and mothers in the state,” Perryman said.

Perryman declined to say what actions Democracy Forward might take should Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Republican anti-abortion crusader, rule that the agencies aren’t required to give up the data.

Stay on top of San Antonio news and views. Sign up for our Weekly Headlines Newsletter.

Related Stories

As voters key in on abortion, Texas delays release of new maternal death data until after midterms

‘There are a lot of us that want to know whether or not pregnancy in Texas is a death sentence,’ one Democratic lawmaker said.

Texas health agency says its plan to extend maternal Medicaid coverage is ‘not approvable’ by feds

HHSC said it was initially told the plan was “not approvable.” Federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services issued a statement Friday saying Texas’ plan to extend coverage to six months was not rejected but still under review.

Texas officials celebrated end of abortion rights after cutting back postpartum Medicaid extension

Greg Abbott claimed Texas provides expectant mothers ‘necessary resources so that they can choose life for their child,’ but it is now one of a dwindling number of states not to offer Medicaid coverage for a full year after residents give birth.

Delayed Texas maternal mortality report to be released next week, state says

Due in September, the report was delayed to allow a full review of 2019 cases, the state health agency said. That review didn’t change the findings.

New Texas maternal mortality report shows disparities persist

The Maternal Mortality and Morbidity Review Committee report, delayed by more than three months, estimates that up to 90% of the deaths may have been preventable. Severe complications from pregnancy and childbirth also increased significantly.

Maternal deaths surged in Texas in 2020, 2021

Even excluding deaths related to COVID, Texas’ maternal mortality rate spiked, reversing two years of improvement.

This article appears in Sep 21 – Oct 4, 2022.