Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Maternal Mortality topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Maternal mortality review finds majority of deaths occur postpartum; substance use and mental health prominent
Summary
The Maternal Mortality Review presented 11 years of cases showing most maternal deaths occurred in the postpartum period, with substance use (including overdoses involving xylazine) and mental-health conditions common; the committee discussed using opioid settlement and other funds for prevention and supporting coroners' capacity.
The committee reviewed an 11‑year Maternal Mortality Review that found most maternal deaths in Vermont occurred during the postpartum period rather than during childbirth and highlighted substance use, mental‑health disorders and socioeconomic vulnerability as recurring factors.
Esme, who reported the review, said 72 percent of perinatal deaths in the reviewed period took place in the postpartum interval — around 45 to 130 days after childbirth or within the year following delivery. The review found that nearly half of 29 reviewed cases since 2012 were directly caused by accidental overdose or endocarditis related to IV drug use; more than 90 percent of perinatal deaths occurred among people with a diagnosed mental‑health disorder, and 10 percent were identified as suicide.
Committee members raised human‑trafficking links after a 2024 case and discussed bolstering primary‑care access and prevention services for new parents. One member suggested directing opioid‑settlement dollars to statewide supports for new mothers, noting pediatric settings can be a point of screening for maternal mental health and substance use.
Report authors also flagged a sharp increase in fatal opioid overdoses involving xylazine in Vermont’s general population — rising from 5 percent of fatal overdoses in 2019 to 32 percent in 2022 — and recommended attention to that trend. The review requested sustained funding for the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner to enable timely investigations and family outreach; the committee discussed capacity and pay challenges reported by the office.
The committee agreed to invite relevant agencies and organizations for follow-up testimony and to explore prevention funding options and improved screening pathways in primary and pediatric care.
