Long before COVID-19 hit the U.S. in early 2020, the American health system was suffering another crisis: alarmingly high — and rising — rates of maternal mortality, particularly among black women. In this country, an estimated two women die every day from pregnancy and childbirth-related causes. And 60 percent of those deaths could have been prevented. And now, the coronavirus is forcing tens of thousands of women to give birth in unprecedented circumstances — sometimes alone, and often without the support networks they need to stay healthy. 

In Part 1 of a special episode of “Next Question with Katie Couric,” Katie talks to Charles Johnson, whose wife Kira died in 2016 just hours after giving birth to their second son, Langston. “I thought that what happened to Kira was an isolated incident,” Charles tells Katie. “I thought, this doesn’t happen in 2016, in our country.” Why are women like Kira Johnson — healthy, prepared, and insured — dying? And how did the U.S. become one of the most dangerous places in the developed world to have a baby? 

Guests and resources for this episode include:
Charles Johnson, founder of 4Kira4Moms, a non-profit dedicated to maternal mortality advocacy.
Dr. Debra Bingham, founder and executive director of the Institute for Perinatal Quality Improvement, and associate professor at the University of Maryland
Monica Rose McLemore, associate professor in the family health care nursing department at the University of California, San Francisco
Nina Martin, an investigative reporter at ProPublica and co-author of the award-winning ProPublica and NPR series “Lost Mothers.”

For more information, sign up for Katie Couric’s newsletter Wake-Up Call at KatieCouric.com.

 Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

Long before COVID-19 hit the U.S. in early 2020, the American health system was suffering another crisis: alarmingly high — and rising — rates of maternal mortality, particularly among black women. In this country, an estimated two women die every day from pregnancy and childbirth-related causes. And 60 percent of those deaths could have been prevented. And now, the coronavirus is forcing tens of thousands of women to give birth in unprecedented circumstances — sometimes alone, and often without the support networks they need to stay healthy. In Part 1 of a special episode of “Next Question with Katie Couric,” Katie talks to Charles Johnson, whose wife Kira died in 2016 just hours after giving birth to their second son, Langston. “I thought that what happened to Kira was an isolated incident,” Charles tells Katie. “I thought, this doesn’t happen in 2016, in our country.” Why are women like Kira Johnson — healthy, prepared, and insured — dying? And how did the U.S. become one of the most dangerous places in the developed world to have a baby? Guests and resources for this episode include:<ul>
<li>
<a href="https://twitter.com/4kira4moms?lang=en">Charles Johnson</a>, founder of <a href="https://4kira4moms.com/">4Kira4Moms</a>, a non-profit dedicated to maternal mortality advocacy.</li>
<li>
<a href="https://twitter.com/debra_bingham?lang=en">Dr. Debra Bingham</a>, founder and executive director of the <a href="https://www.perinatalqi.org/">Institute for Perinatal Quality Improvement</a>, and associate professor at the University of Maryland</li>
<li>
<a href="https://twitter.com/mclemoremr?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor">Monica Rose McLemore</a>, associate professor in the family health care nursing department at the University of California, San Francisco</li>
<li>
<a href="https://twitter.com/ByNinaMartin?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor">Nina Martin</a>, an investigative reporter at ProPublica and co-author of the award-winning ProPublica and NPR series “<a href="https://www.propublica.org/series/lost-mothers">Lost Mothers</a>.”</li>
</ul>For more information, sign up for Katie Couric’s newsletter Wake-Up Call at <a href="https://katiecouric.com/newsletter">KatieCouric.com</a>. Learn more about your ad-choices at <a href="https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com">https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com</a>

Katie Couric is back on the mic with a new season of intimate, urgent and unexpected conversations – this time with a new twist. Along with her signature in-depth one-on-one interviews, she’ll be joined by a number of special guest-hosts for a series of “Katie Plus One” episodes. Together they’ll get to know some of the world’s most interesting and influential people and explore the big ideas percolating in the zeitgeist--but with a focus on slowing down, diving deep, and connecting with each other, a reprieve from a culture obsessed with hot takes and surface-level small talk. Tune in every Thursday and join Katie Couric and her guests for a conversation that feels like a warm hug and a seat at the table.

Katie Couric is back on the mic with a new season of intimate, urgent and unexpected conversations – this time with a new twist. Along with her signature in-depth one-on-one interviews, she’ll be joined by a number of special guest-hosts for a series of “Katie Plus One” episodes. Together they’ll get to know some of the world’s most interesting and influential people and explore the big ideas percolating in the zeitgeist--but with a focus on slowing down, diving deep, and connecting with each other, a reprieve from a culture obsessed with hot takes and surface-level small talk. Tune in every Thursday and join Katie Couric and her guests for a conversation that feels like a warm hug and a seat at the table.

Next Question with Katie Couric

Katie Couric is back on the mic with a new season of intimate, urgent and unexpected conversations – this time with a new twist. Along with her signature in-depth one-on-one interviews, she’ll be joined by a number of special guest-hosts for a series of “Katie Plus One” episodes. Together they’ll get to know some of the world’s most interesting and influential people and explore the big ideas percolating in the zeitgeist--but with a focus on slowing down, diving deep, and connecting with each other, a reprieve from a culture obsessed with hot takes and surface-level small talk.

Tune in every Thursday and join Katie Couric and her guests for a conversation that feels like a warm hug and a seat at the table.

Katie Couric is back on the mic with a new season of intimate, urgent and unexpected conversations – this time with a new twist. Along with her signature in-depth one-on-one interviews, she’ll be joined by a number of special guest-hosts for a series of “Katie Plus One” episodes. Together they’ll get to know some of the world’s most interesting and influential people and explore the big ideas percolating in the zeitgeist--but with a focus on slowing down, diving deep, and connecting with each other, a reprieve from a culture obsessed with hot takes and surface-level small talk.
Tune in every Thursday and join Katie Couric and her guests for a conversation that feels like a warm hug and a seat at the table.

America’s Maternal Mortality Crisis, Part 1

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/6a9b6021-30c9-4f97-8915-ae28005f8742/transcript

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