Maternal/Women's Health

The Maternal and Child Health Block Grant Program provides health care and public health services for 86% of all pregnant women in the United States.In all 59 states and jurisdictions, we support programs and services that advance women's health.

What Are Our Goals?

We focus our efforts on three key strategic priorities:

  • Improving women’s health before, during, and beyond pregnancy and across their life course;
  • Improving the quality and safety of maternity care; and
  • Improving systems of maternity care including both clinical and public health systems; 

Which Programs and Initiatives Help Us Accomplish Our Goals?

  • HRSA Preventive Services
  • Title V MCH Block Grant
  • Healthy Start

  • MCHB has taken a leading role at the national level to decrease maternal morbidity and mortality throughout the United States. The MCHB-supported Alliance for Innovation on Maternal Health (AIM) Maternal Health and Safety Initiative exit dsiclaimer is working with 13 states and more than 667 hospitals to implement maternal safety bundles to improve the quality and safety of maternity care, with the goal of preventing 100,000 maternal deaths and severe morbidity by 2018. Through AIM, we work directly with women’s health practitioners in birthing facilities, reaching 1,780,000 annual births or 45% of all annual U.S. births.

    Safety bundles are small, straightforward sets of evidence-based practices that, when performed collectively and reliably, have been proven to improve patient outcomes. Available safety bundles exit dsiclaimer:

    • Maternal Early Warning Signs
    • Hemorrhage
    • Hypertension in Pregnancy
    • Venous Thromboembolism
    • Supporting Intended Vaginal Births
    • Reduction of Peripartum Racial Disparities
    • Postpartum Care Basics for Maternal Safety
    • Obstetric Care for Opioid Dependent Women

    States have reported notable impact from the safety bundles. For example, Illinois reduced severe maternal morbidity by about 22% and reduced morbidity due to hypertension by nearly 20% through its AIM hypertension initiative, and Oklahoma saw about a 20% decrease in severe maternal morbidity in its participating hospitals.*
    *Report of collaborative overall data per state, ACOG, June 2017

Learn more about MCHB's and HRSA's efforts to address maternal mortality.

Date Last Reviewed:  February 2019


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Title V in Your State

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