Health Services Financing and Utilization

prenatal care

Timely Prenatal Care. Prenatal care-especially care beginning in the first trimester-improves pregnancy outcomes by identifying and managing chronic and pregnancy-related conditions and providing expectant parents with relevant health care advice. The rate of first trimester prenatal care utilization has been increasing fairly steadily since the early 1990s, and in 2003, 84.1 percent of women received prenatal care during the first trimester of pregnancy.

The increase in prenatal care utilization over the past decade has been especially remarkable among racial and ethnic groups with historically low rates of prenatal care. The proportion of non-Hispanic Black, Hispanic, and American Indian women receiving early prenatal care increased by 20 percent or more since 1990; however, disparities still exist. In 2003, non-Hispanic White women had the highest rates of early prenatal care utilization (89.0 percent), followed by Asian/Pacific Islander women (85.4 percent), non-Hispanic Black women (75.9 percent), and Hispanic women (77.5 percent); American Indian women had the lowest rate of early prenatal care utilization (70.8 percent).

Late or No Prenatal Care. The percentage of women beginning prenatal care in the third trimester or going without prenatal care decreased slightly to 3.5 percent in 2003. Hispanic and non-Hispanic Black women are more than twice as likely than non-Hispanic White women to receive late or no prenatal care. Other risk factors for late or no prenatal care include being younger than 20 years old, being unmarried, and having low educational attainment.

> Bar Chart: Mothers Beginning Prenatal Care in the First Trimester, by Age and Race: 2003

> Bar Chart: Mothers Receiving Late or No Prenatal Care, by Age and Race: 2003