South Carolina H 3112: Maternal Mortality Study Committee

Bill Text

2025-2026 Bill 3112 Text of Previous Version (Dec. 06, 2024) - South Carolina Legislature Online 

South Carolina General Assembly
126th Session, 2025-2026

Bill 3112

Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter

(Text matches printed bills. Document has been reformatted to meet World Wide Web specifications.)

A joint Resolution

TO CREATE A STUDY COMMITTEE TO EXAMINE MATERNAL MORTALITY 
RATES AMONG NON-HISPANIC BLACK WOMEN IN SOUTH CAROLINA AND HOW THE RATES VARY 
FROM RATES EXPERIENCED BY OTHER WOMEN AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES; TO PROVIDE FOR 
THE STUDY COMMITTEE'S MEMBERSHIP; AND TO REQUIRE THE STUDY COMMITTEE TO PREPARE 
A REPORT AFTER WHICH THE STUDY COMMITTEE IS DISSOLVED.

Whereas, 
among developed nations, the United States has the highest maternal mortality 
rate, which refers to the death of a woman during her pregnancy or up to a year 
after her pregnancy has terminated but only including causes related to her 
pregnancy and excluding accidental causes. About 700 women die each year in the 
United States from childbirth, and another 50,000 suffer from severe 
complications; and

Whereas, 
according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in 2017, the 
maternal morbidity rate for African American women in the United States was 
43.5 for every 100,000, a rate three to four times higher than for any other 
race. For every thirteen white women, there are forty-four Black women who die 
from pregnancy complications; and

Whereas, 
South Carolina's maternal mortality rate is the eighth highest in the country 
with 26.5 mothers dying from pregnancy complications for every 100,000 births, 
compared to the national average of 20.7; and

Whereas, 
from 2011-2015, non-Hispanic Black women had a maternal mortality rate nearly 
four times greater than White women. A "pregnancy-related death" means the 
death of a person while pregnant or within three hundred sixty-five days of the 
end of a pregnancy, irrespective of the duration or site of the pregnancy, from 
any cause related to, or aggravated by, the pregnancy or its management, but 
not from accidental or incidental causes; and

Whereas, 
severe bleeding, cardiovascular conditions, and hypertension are a few of the 
most common causes of maternal morbidity in this State, and more than half of 
the deaths have been deemed preventable by the CDC; and

Whereas, 
the combination of access to prenatal care, socioeconomic status, general 
physical health, and other factors negatively affect maternal morbidity among 
non-Hispanic Black women in South Carolina; and

Whereas, 
it is the intent of the General Assembly to reduce the maternal mortality rate 
in South Carolina. Now, therefore,

Be it enacted by the 
General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

SECTION 1. 
(A)(1) There is created a study committee to examine:

 (a) the 
maternal mortality rate among non-Hispanic Black women in South Carolina, and 
how this varies from the rates experienced by other women;

 (b) 
maternal mortality data associated with perinatal care, including by race or 
ethnicity, to determine any statewide trends, statistically significant 
differences in maternal mortality rates among races or ethnicities, and reasons 
for the differences; and

 (c) all 
methods and practices that will improve rates of maternal mortality among 
non-Hispanic Black women in South Carolina.

 (2) For 
purposes of this SECTION:

 (a) "Healthcare provider" means a 
hospital, as defined in Section 44-7-130, that provides perinatal care, a 
birthing center, as defined in Section 44-89-30, and any primary healthcare 
clinic or physician's office in the State 
delivering perinatal care services.

 (b) 
"Perinatal care" means the provision of care during pregnancy, labor, delivery, 
and postpartum and neonatal periods.

 (B) The study 
committee shall provide a report that:

 (1) addresses 
the areas of examination set forth in subsection (A); and

 (2) makes 
recommendations for legislative or policy changes to decrease maternal 
mortality rates and disparities in maternal mortality rates associated with 
perinatal care.

 (C)(1) The study 
committee is composed of thirteen members, consisting of:

 (a) two 
administrators of hospitals that provide perinatal care whose patient 
demographics are well represented by communities of color, appointed in 
consultation with the South Carolina Hospital Association as follows:

 (i) one 
member appointed by the Chair of the Senate Medical Affairs Committee; and

 (ii) 
one member appointed by the Chair of the House Medical, Military, Public and 
Municipal Affairs Committee;

 (b) two 
obstetrician gynecologists providing perinatal care whose patient demographics 
are well represented by communities of color, appointed in consultation with 
the South Carolina Medical Association as follows:

 (i) one 
member appointed by the Senate Minority Leader; and

 (ii) 
one member appointed by the House Minority Leader;

 (c) a 
psychologist appointed by