AP business correspondent Seth Sutel reports on Wall Street.

found, compared with 12 OB-GYNs and four midwives in the U.S. Thedeems more than a third of American counties maternity care deserts and recommends integrating and expanding midwifery in all states.

Regular care — for every pregnant person, no matter their financial or legal status — means problems are spotted and treated early, said Roosa Sofia Tikkanen, a doctoral candidate at the Center for Global Health Inequalities Research in Norway. She said immigrants lacking permanent legal status are entitled to the same prenatal care as others, plus translation services if necessary.“Maternal mortality is an entirely preventable event providing you have access to basic health care,” Tikkanen said. “Not high-tech health care but basic health care.”What happens during and after delivery also makes a difference. The national rate for cesarean sections, which are more likely than vaginal births to lead to complications, is about 16% in Norway and 32% in the U.S.

Midwife Celena Brown examines Kayleigh Sturrup during a pregnancy checkup. Midwives at Commonsense Childbirth are striving to provide good, accessible care. Experts cite the nonprofit, started by an immigrant from the U.K., Jennie Joseph, as model for helping reduce maternal mortality. Tuesday, June 25, 2024 (AP Photo/Laura Ungar)Midwife Celena Brown examines Kayleigh Sturrup during a pregnancy checkup. Midwives at Commonsense Childbirth are striving to provide good, accessible care. Experts cite the nonprofit, started by an immigrant from the U.K., Jennie Joseph, as model for helping reduce maternal mortality. Tuesday, June 25, 2024 (AP Photo/Laura Ungar)

The Scandinavian country and many other European nations also have generous paid leave, which research links to better postpartum health. Norway mandates

between maternity, parental and home care leave. The U.S. requires none.An industry that saw waves of store growth before the COVID-19 pandemic faces headwinds like falling prescription reimbursement, persistent theft and changing shopping habits. But as drugstores right-size their physical footprint, experts say they can leave behind communities that have come to depend on them as trusted sources of care and advice — both of which can be hard to find in many urban and rural areas.

“That trust, you just can’t quantify it,” said Omolola Adepoju, a University of Houston health services researcher. “And I don’t think it gets spoken about enough when we talk about pharmacy closures.”There’s a pattern to who has access to pharmacies, with gaps forming in urban and rural neighborhoods.

Residents of neighborhoods that are largely Black and Latino have fewer pharmacies per capita than people who live in mostly white neighborhoods, according toof licensing data from 44 states, data from the National Council for Prescription Drug Programs and the American Community Survey. It’s consistent with prior research that documents where urban “pharmacy deserts” are more likely to be concentrated.