Overview
- Germany’s statistics office, which reported the figures Monday, said 654,600 hospital births in 2024 included 215,900 C-sections, the highest share since reunification at 33.0%.
- Rates vary widely by state, with Hamburg highest at 36.4% and Saxony lowest at 27.4%, followed by Brandenburg at 27.6% and Berlin at 29.9%.
- Most women still deliver vaginally, with 60.1% having births without operative help, while vacuum extraction was used in 6.7% of cases and forceps in 0.2%.
- Hospitals reported about 12,900 midwives and obstetric nurses in 2024, up 3.3% from 2023, with roughly 89% in permanent posts.
- Professional groups split on causes and responses, as the gynecology society says about 10% of C-sections are strictly life‑saving while the midwives’ association argues risk‑oriented care labels most pregnancies as high risk and calls for one‑to‑one, midwife‑led birth support.