Delay in Data Reporting Impacts Families, Communities
Illustration: Ken Tackett/shutterstock.com
By Kelly Jordan
Earlier this year, data collection through the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS) was quietly halted. The program was developed in 1987 to prevent infant deaths and is run through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Division of Reproductive Health in coordination with state, territorial, or local health departments. In the 38 years since it has been in operation, PRAMS has benefited mothers and babies nationwide through the information it collects about pregnancy and birth.
When PRAMS was first implemented, 10 out of every 1,000 infants died before their first birthday. These days, infant mortality is nearly half that, with 5.5 deaths out of every 1,000 babies in 2022. This success was driven, in part, by data obtained from PRAMS and other systems that provide a national snapshot of the true circumstances pregnant people experience before, during, and after birth. These data have been used to inform prevention efforts and research that has fueled the field of maternal health.
“There are so many factors that influence health. As we think about vulnerable times in life or populations that tend to be vulnerable, pregnancy and infancy certainly fall into these categories,” says Lauren Christiansen-Lindquist, PhD, associate professor of epidemiology at the Rollins School of Public Health. “It’s important that we have access to good data that allow us to understand when pregnant people are at risk, so we can intervene and improve maternal health.”
PRAMS collects information from individuals who have recently given birth to learn about their experiences shortly before, during, and after their pregnancy. Surveys are sent by mail, and participants are selected at random. The survey casts a wide net to consider both medical and contextual factors that might impact their health and the health of their newborn. These topics include personal health behaviors, income, experiences during prenatal visits, health status, insurance, their delivery, and their baby’s health.
Information collected from these surveys can help identify risk factors for mothers and babies, highlight knowledge gaps, and surface potential opportunities for research. PRAMS is a resource that has been widely used by public health researchers, state and local health departments, and doctors and nurses working in maternal and child health.
As of March 18, 2025, the PRAMS website has not published 2023 data (the website states it will be available in March) and no new data collection has begun for 2025 (it usually is continuous). This means four months of births are slipping by, leaving out vital information about lived experiences that could benefit the health and safety of babies and their mothers.
“Maternal mortality is much higher in the United States compared to other high-income countries,” says Christiansen-Lindquist. “PRAMS is an important tool to help identify factors that may not be assessed in the health care setting that could contribute to these high rates.”
