Prenatal Care – San Bernardino County Community Indicators

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EARLY PRENATAL CARE RATES DROP TO 10-YEAR LOW

Increasing the number of women who receive early prenatal care (in the first trimester of pregnancy) can improve birth outcomes and lower health care costs by reducing the likelihood of complications during pregnancy and childbirth. Babies born to mothers who do not receive prenatal care are three times more likely to have a low birth weight and five times more likely to die than those born to mothers who do get care. Early prenatal care allows women and their health care providers to identify and, when possible, treat health problems and address health-compromising behaviors that can be particularly damaging during the initial stages of fetal development.^[1] This indicator tracks early prenatal care rates for San Bernardino County, including detail by race and ethnicity.

TREND

The rate of San Bernardino County mothers receiving early prenatal care decreased by 3.6 percentage points, from 85.1% in 2022 to 81.5% in 2023. This rate is the lowest in the 10-year period between 2014 and 2023.

Over the past 10 years, the number of live births in San Bernardino County decreased 20%, from 31,226 live births in 2014 to 24,901 in 2023.

PRENATAL CARE RATES DECLINE

Percentage of Mothers Receiving Early Prenatal Care by Race and Ethnicity in San Bernardino County, 2014-2023

Note: Due to changes in data source, data presented cannot be compared with prior indicator reports.

Source: California Department of Public Health, Comprehensive Master Birth File, 2014-2023

What is Healthy People 2030?

Healthy People 2030 is a national health promotion and disease prevention initiative that establishes national objectives to improve the health of all Americans, to eliminate disparities in health, and to increase the years and quality of healthy life.

RACE/ETHNICITY DETAIL

Sixty-four percent (64%) of mothers receiving early prenatal care in 2023 identified as Latina, while18% identified as White. Similarly, the majority of births in San Bernardino County are to Latina mothers (65%), followed by White mothers (18%). In the accompanying chart, the distribution of San Bernardino County births by race and ethnicity is provided for context.

RACE/ETHNICITY DISTRIBUTION OF MOTHERS RECEIVING EARLY PRENATAL CARE IS ROUGHLY IN LINE WITH BIRTHS

Race/Ethnicity Distribution of Early Prenatal Care and Births in San Bernardino County, 2023

Note: To understand receipt of early prenatal care by race or ethnicity, the chart displays the number of mothers from each racial or ethnic group that received early prenatal care expressed as a percent of all mothers that received early prenatal care, compared to each group’s percentage of live births. For example, if 100 expecting mothers received early prenatal care, and 64 of those mothers identified as Latina, then 64% of expecting mothers receiving early prenatal care are Latina.  This can be compared to the proportion of live births that were to Latina mothers.  For example, if 64% of mothers receiving early prenatal care are Latina, and 64% of all births were to Latina mothers, then it suggests there is no under- or over-representation of Latina mothers among those receiving early prenatal care.

Source: California Department of Public Health, Comprehensive Master Birth File, 2023

Maternal Morbidity Rate

Severe maternal morbidity includes unexpected and potentially life-threatening complications from labor and delivery, such as hemorrhage, infection, and cardiac arrests. At 124.8 per 10,000 deliveries, San Bernardino County has the highest rate of severe maternal morbidity among counties compared and a higher rate than the state. The rate of severe maternal morbidity has increased 17% in the five-year period between 2019 and 2023, from 106.4 to 124.8 per 10,000 deliveries.

Source: California Department of Public Health, Center for Family Health, Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health Division. Severe Maternal Morbidity Dashboard. Last Modified February 2025.

[1] U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Institute for Child Health and Human Development, https://www.nichd.nih.gov/health/topics/pregnancy/conditioninfo/prenatal-care (accessed April 6, 2025)