Mississippi has led the nation in its rates of low-risk C-sections over the last decade despite national pressure to reduce them. While the state’s overall prevalence of these surgeries is high, a few hospitals stand out – with some reporting nearly half of women at low-risk for the surgery receiving it anyway.
Judges’ comments
This series from Mississippi Today and The Fuller Project stood out as a clear and deeply consequential piece of public health journalism. The reporting identifies a specific and alarming problem—persistently high rates of low-risk C-sections in Mississippi, with striking variation across hospitals despite national efforts to reduce them—and then methodically unpacks both its scale and its complexity. The work is comprehensive in scope, combining statewide data analysis with on-the-ground reporting and lived experiences that bring urgency and humanity to the issue. Most notably, the series does not stop at diagnosis: it highlights hospitals that are challenging the status quo, offering concrete examples of what better care can look like and grounding the reporting in potential solutions. The project also reflects an exceptional commitment to transparency and accountability, with a detailed methodology and the creation of a public-facing database that allows readers to examine their own hospital’s performance on C-sections and births. By pairing investigative depth with practical tools and human stories, this series not only informs but empowers the public—giving patients information they can use to advocate for themselves while holding institutions accountable for the care they provide.