Ethnic inequalities in maternal and neonatal outcomes in England cost the country an estimated £352 million per year in healthcare costs and productivity losses.

Published on Tuesday, 30 June 2026 Post

We know that Black and Asian women and their babies experience worse pregnancy and birth outcomes than White women: Black and Asian women are more likely to die during or shortly after pregnancy, experience major complications, or have a preterm birth; and their babies are more likely to be stillborn or die.

Although the risks of these outcomes thankfully remain low in all groups, the marked ethnic inequalities are clearly an urgent concern as expressed today by the National Maternity and Neonatal Investigation. Less well-defined are the economic consequences of these ethnic inequalities on the NHS and wider society. The NPEU's Health Economics group set out to estimate this economic burden by reviewing data on births in England over a one-year period.

The team estimated the total economic burden of ethnic inequalities at £352 million per year, made up of approximately £115 million in costs relating to mothers and £237 million in costs relating to babies. They acknowledge that the true total costs likely run much higher, as the model did not account for long-term consequences and wider societal costs such as unpaid care, social care, or educational impacts.

This research shows that in addition to benefitting the health and wellbeing of minoritised women and babies, addressing ethnic inequalities in maternal and neonatal outcomes could also substantially benefit the economy.

You can read more about the project and download the full report here: https://www.npeu.ox.ac.uk/pru-mnhc/projects/project-1-identifying-effective-and-cost-effective-interventions-to-reduce-ethnic-inequalities-in-maternal-and-neonatal-health