Cesarean Rates: Where Does Your State Rank?

Let's call a spade a spade...

The 33% U.S. c section rate is abysmal, criminal, and cannot be defended.
Birth research suggests that cesarean surgery is only truly needed in about 3% of all cases of human birth, and should never surpass 10%, or we find that women's and babies' health suffers across the board as a result.
What are your odds when you step into that hospital?

Thank you to the Unnecessarean for compiling these numbers

Percent of babies born by cesarean delivery, each state: preliminary 2009

1	Louisiana	39.6
2t	New Jersey	39.4
2t	New York	39.4
4	Florida	38.1
5	Mississippi	37.8
6	West Virginia	36.0
7	Kentucky	35.9
8	Delaware	35.7
9t	Alabama	35.6
9t	Connecticut	35.6
11t	South Carolina	35.3
11t	Texas	35.3
13t	Arkansas	34.6
13t	Oklahoma	34.6
15	Virginia	34.3
16t	Nevada	33.8
16t	Tennessee	33.8
18	Georgia	33.6
19	Maryland	33.5
20	Massachusetts	33.4
21	California	33.0
22	Rhode Island	32.8
23	Michigan	32.1
24	Pennsylvania	31.8
25t	Missouri	31.7
25t	Nebraska	31.7
27	Illinois	31.5
18	North Carolina	31.2
19	Ohio	31.1
30	New Hampshire	30.8
31	Indiana	30.5
32	Iowa	30.3
33	Kansas	30.1
34t	Maine	29.6
34t	Montana	29.6
36	Oregon	29.4
37	North Dakota	29.3
38	Washington	29.2
39	Wyoming	28.1
40	Vermont	27.9
41t	Arizona	27.4
41t	Minnesota	27.4
43	Hawaii	27.0
44	Colorado	26.4
45	South Dakota	26.3
46	Wisconsin	25.8
47	Idaho	24.5
48	Alaska	23.8
49	Utah	22.9
50	New Mexico	22.8
United States		32.9

SOURCE:  National Vital Statistics System

 

From Births: Preliminary Data for 2009 (pdf):

The cesarean delivery rate rose to 32.9 percent in 2009, an increase of 2 percent and another record U.S. high.  The percentage of births delivered by cesarean has been rising steadily for over a decade, and is up nearly 60% since 1996.  

Between 2008 and 2009 cesarean delivery rates rose among women of all age groups 20 years and older, and all race and ethnicity groups.  The largest increase was among  non-Hispanic black women (up 3 percent); rates rose 1-2 percent among non-Hispanic white, Hispanic, AIAN and API women. In 2009, women 40 years and  older were as likely to have a cesarean as a vaginal delivery, that is, ½ of all births to women in this age group were in a cesarean delivery (data not tabulated).

To learn more about cesareans, please visit Birthologie.com