Lifetime risk of maternal death in North America
North America: Lifetime risk of maternal death was 4,322 1 in: rate varies by country in 2023. ▼ Falling
Lifetime risk of maternal death in North America, 1985–2023
Source: Trends in Maternal Mortality, World Health Organization (WHO). Measured in 1 in: rate varies by country.
Analysis
North America recorded 4,322 1 in: rate varies by country for lifetime risk of maternal death in 2023.
That represents a change of up 24.0% on the previous year and up 6.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, lifetime risk of maternal death in North America peaked at 5,555 1 in: rate varies by country in 1997 and was at its lowest, 2,337 1 in: rate varies by country, in 2021.
North America ranks 7th of 47 groups on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 39 years of available data.
Lifetime risk of maternal death in North America, year by year
| Year | 1 in: rate varies by country | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | 4,948 1 in: rate varies by country | — |
| 1986 | 4,925 1 in: rate varies by country | -0.5% |
| 1987 | 4,834 1 in: rate varies by country | -1.8% |
| 1988 | 4,666 1 in: rate varies by country | -3.5% |
| 1989 | 4,519 1 in: rate varies by country | -3.2% |
| 1990 | 4,482 1 in: rate varies by country | -0.8% |
| 1991 | 4,572 1 in: rate varies by country | +2.0% |
| 1992 | 4,818 1 in: rate varies by country | +5.4% |
| 1993 | 4,909 1 in: rate varies by country | +1.9% |
| 1994 | 5,074 1 in: rate varies by country | +3.4% |
| 1995 | 5,174 1 in: rate varies by country | +2.0% |
| 1996 | 5,350 1 in: rate varies by country | +3.4% |
| 1997 | 5,555 1 in: rate varies by country | +3.8% |
| 1998 | 5,520 1 in: rate varies by country | -0.6% |
| 1999 | 5,298 1 in: rate varies by country | -4.0% |
| 2000 | 5,074 1 in: rate varies by country | -4.2% |
| 2001 | 4,906 1 in: rate varies by country | -3.3% |
| 2002 | 4,822 1 in: rate varies by country | -1.7% |
| 2003 | 4,655 1 in: rate varies by country | -3.5% |
| 2004 | 4,678 1 in: rate varies by country | +0.5% |
| 2005 | 4,593 1 in: rate varies by country | -1.8% |
| 2006 | 4,447 1 in: rate varies by country | -3.2% |
| 2007 | 4,401 1 in: rate varies by country | -1.0% |
| 2008 | 4,341 1 in: rate varies by country | -1.4% |
| 2009 | 4,231 1 in: rate varies by country | -2.5% |
| 2010 | 4,373 1 in: rate varies by country | +3.4% |
| 2011 | 4,220 1 in: rate varies by country | -3.5% |
| 2012 | 4,132 1 in: rate varies by country | -2.1% |
| 2013 | 4,066 1 in: rate varies by country | -1.6% |
| 2014 | 3,901 1 in: rate varies by country | -4.1% |
| 2015 | 3,811 1 in: rate varies by country | -2.3% |
| 2016 | 3,681 1 in: rate varies by country | -3.4% |
| 2017 | 3,747 1 in: rate varies by country | +1.8% |
| 2018 | 3,871 1 in: rate varies by country | +3.3% |
| 2019 | 3,938 1 in: rate varies by country | +1.7% |
| 2020 | 3,187 1 in: rate varies by country | -19.1% |
| 2021 | 2,337 1 in: rate varies by country | -26.7% |
| 2022 | 3,486 1 in: rate varies by country | +49.2% |
| 2023 | 4,322 1 in: rate varies by country | +24.0% |
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Lifetime risk of maternal death in North America changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | +49.2% | 2,337 1 in: rate varies by country | 3,486 1 in: rate varies by country |
| 2021 | -26.7% | 3,187 1 in: rate varies by country | 2,337 1 in: rate varies by country |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 4,778 1 in: rate varies by country | 4,519 1 in: rate varies by country | 4,948 1 in: rate varies by country | 5 |
| 1990s | 5,075 1 in: rate varies by country | 4,482 1 in: rate varies by country | 5,555 1 in: rate varies by country | 10 |
| 2000s | 4,615 1 in: rate varies by country | 4,231 1 in: rate varies by country | 5,074 1 in: rate varies by country | 10 |
| 2010s | 3,974 1 in: rate varies by country | 3,681 1 in: rate varies by country | 4,373 1 in: rate varies by country | 10 |
| 2020s | 3,333 1 in: rate varies by country | 2,337 1 in: rate varies by country | 4,322 1 in: rate varies by country | 4 |
Countries ranked near North America
- 4 Korea 43,501 1 in: rate varies by country compare
- 5 Spain 38,118 1 in: rate varies by country compare
- 6 Japan 35,149 1 in: rate varies by country compare
- 7 Czechia 31,604 1 in: rate varies by country compare
- 8 North Macedonia 29,386 1 in: rate varies by country compare
- 9 United Arab Emirates 29,127 1 in: rate varies by country compare
- 10 Australia 28,182 1 in: rate varies by country compare
More health data for North America
- Population ages 55-59, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 55-59, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 55-59, female, per capita 0.0297 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 55-59, male, annual growth rate -0.5946 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 15-19, female, per capita 0.0314 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 60-64, female, annual growth rate -0.6806 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 60-64, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 15-19, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 15-19, male, annual growth rate 0.3175 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 55-59, male, per capita 0.0301 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is lifetime risk of maternal death in North America?
- Lifetime risk of maternal death in North America was 4,322 1 in: rate varies by country in 2023, according to Trends in Maternal Mortality, World Health Organization (WHO).
- What is the highest lifetime risk of maternal death recorded in North America?
- The highest recorded value was 5,555 1 in: rate varies by country in 1997.
- What is the lowest lifetime risk of maternal death recorded in North America?
- The lowest recorded value was 2,337 1 in: rate varies by country in 2021.
- How does North America rank for lifetime risk of maternal death?
- North America ranks 7th out of 47 groups with data for 2023.
- Is lifetime risk of maternal death rising or falling in North America?
- Over the last ten years it is up 6.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this North America data come from?
- The figures come from Trends in Maternal Mortality, World Health Organization (WHO), published as part of Lifetime risk of maternal death (1 in: rate varies by country). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 39 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Life time risk of maternal death is the probability that a 15-year-old female will die eventually from a maternal cause assuming that current levels of fertility and mortality (including maternal mortality) do not change in the future, taking into account competing causes of death.