Cesarean Section Rates and Mobile Health’s Role in Equitable Access to Prenatal Care

Cesarean section (CS) rates have risen globally, and while an often lifesaving and necessary intervention, CS deliveries increase future maternal/neonatal risks and are costly to both patients and healthcare systems. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has set a national low-risk pregnancy CS (NTSV) target of 23.9% under the Healthy People 2030 initiative. This analysis compares NTSV rates of uninsured patients receiving prenatal care from a mobile clinic to the national target and also compares overall mobile health CS rates with national and state CS rates. Through reviewing 5 years of electronic medical records, we calculated an NTSV CS rate of 25.0% among our University of Arizona Mobile Health Program prenatal patients, an uninsured and medically vulnerable patient group. This rate is similar to both the most recent Arizona state average of 23.4% and the national target of 23.9%. The MHP total CS rate is 26% over our study period, which is less than the most recent National and Arizona rates of 32.3% and 29.0%. These findings suggest that access to free prenatal care through a mobile health delivery model may contribute to favorable obstetric outcomes among uninsured individuals and have implications for addressing maternal and neonatal health inequities among those who face multiple barriers to receiving adequate prenatal care.