Germany loses half its maternity wards over three decades

The number of maternity wards in Germany has declined markedly since the country’s reunification. While there were 1,186 hospitals with maternity wards in 1991, by 2024 only 578 remained – a drop of more than half (–51.3 per cent). The number of specialised departments of gynaecology and obstetrics also fell, from 1,275 to 758 (–40.5 per cent). Over the same period, the number of births declined more modestly, by 18.4 per cent.

Capacity fell even more sharply. The number of beds in these departments dropped by 63.7 per cent to around 24,100. At the same time, the occupancy rate also declined, from 77.4 per cent to 56.4 per cent, mainly because hospital stays have become shorter.

The decline in the number of facilities affects all federal states, although its intensity varies by region. There are also considerable differences in access to healthcare. In large cities, 95.1 per cent of women aged 16–49 have a hospital within a 15-minute drive. In smaller cities the figures are 73.4 per cent and 44.7 per cent respectively, while in rural areas the share is only 29.9 per cent.

The figures come from an updated hospital atlas that maps regional access to healthcare in Germany.

(lud)