More pregnant Illinoisans are dying — and it’s mostly preventable

A doctor uses a Doppler probe on a pregnant woman to measure the heartbeat of the fetus. (Associated Press file photo)

While deaths among pregnant women are rare, they have increased across Illinois — and the majority of them were possibly preventable, according to a new state report.

Black women continue to be disproportionately affected, and more pregnant people who die are losing their lives months after giving birth as they fall through the cracks of a complicated health system.