Louisiana

Pregnancy and Health Care

Prenatal care is most effective when it begins during the early stages of pregnancy. Prenatal care reduces the risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes. Minority, poor, and adolescent women in particular often only begin wellness checkups when they become pregnant. Louisiana evaluates prenatal care by a modified Kessner index, which defines adequate prenatal care as a first visit in the first trimester and a total number of visits appropriate for the gestational age of the baby. There is no measure of content or quality. Under the Kessner standard, 78.9 percent of women received adequate care. Consistent with the national trend but well below the national percentage, Louisiana is recording an improvement in live births to mothers whose prenatal care begins in the first trimester. In 2002, 83.8 percent of births were to mothers who entered prenatal care in the first trimester, compared to the national rate of 83.7. Louisiana ranked 28th among states in 2002, down from 27th in 2001.

For African American mothers, 74.7 percent had their first prenatal visit in the first trimester; for whites, 90.5 percent. Almost 3 percent (2.7 percent) of African American mothers received no prenatal care compared to 0.5 percent of whites. Mothers under 15 years of age were more likely to wait until after the first trimester, with 49.2 percent waiting until after the first trimester and 5.3 percent having no prenatal care at all. The percentages improved with each age cohort before leveling off in the mid-30s. Minors may get abortions (17 and under) with one parent's consent and a wait of 24 hours, and Medicaid may pay in certain circumstances. Birth control is available at free or sliding-scale Title X clinics.

In 2006 Louisiana reinstituted the requirement that parents with children live apart for a year before filing for divorce, ending the six-month wait implemented as a “no-fault” reform. Because Louisiana has long refused to publish divorce data—giving parishes the option if they choose—there is no way to measure the impact, if any, of the change.

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