Thank the Lawyers of America For This!

The rate of caesarean-section deliveries performed in the U.S. reached a record high in 2004, despite efforts by the government to reduce the rate, according to data released on Tuesday by CDC's National Center for Health Statistics, the AP/Las Vegas Sun reports. Almost 1.2 million c-sections, or 29.1% of all births, were performed in the U.S. in 2004, which is an increase from 27.5% in 2003 and 20.7% in 1996. The government in 2000 introduced an agenda to reduce the rate of c-sections to 15% by 2010. The increase in the c-section rate can be attributed to patient and physician preference, physicians' fears of malpractice lawsuits over problems resulting from vaginal delivery and risks surrounding vaginal birth after c-section, according to the AP/Sun (Stobbe, AP/Las Vegas Sun, 11/16). Many physicians and hospitals will not allow VBACs because of malpractice and liability concerns. In addition, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists in 1999 revised its guidelines to say that only hospitals with a surgical team immediately available should allow VBACs, spurring community hospitals to prohibit the procedure (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 8/24). The rate of VBACs has decreased 67% since 1996, accounting for 9.2% of births in 2004. A study released in December 2004 said 75% of VBACs observed were successful, with fewer than 1% of participants experiencing a uterine tear (Rubin, USA Today, 11/16).