Maternal/Women's Health

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Learn about HRSA's research in this special supplement to the Annals of Internal Medicine, Maternal Health in the United States: Findings from the Health Resources and Services Administration and Partners.

Read about the HRSA's 2018 Maternal Health Global Summit that spurred the development of this special edition.

The Maternal and Child Health Block Grant Program provides health care and public health services for 91% of all pregnant women in the United States.

Maternal Health

We support programs and services nationwide that support maternal health. Our programs aim to:

Improve maternal health before, during, and beyond pregnancy
Improve the quality and safety of maternity care
Improve women’s health across the lifespan

How do we accomplish our goals?

These programs help us reach our goals:

Title V Maternal and Child Health Services Block Grant (Title V)
Grant recipients must track how they improve:

Maternal mortality (MM)
Severe maternal morbidity (SMM)
Infant mortality

Alliance for Innovation on Maternal Health (AIM) and AIM Community Care Initiative (AIM-CCI)
These programs develop and implement safer and more effective maternal care practices to prevent MM and SMM.

State Maternal Health Innovation Program (State MHI)
State MHI helps states address disparities in maternal health and improve maternal health outcomes through innovation in maternal health service delivery. This includes expanding telehealth options to improve access to care.

Screening and Treatment for Maternal Depression and Related Behavioral Disorders Program
This program supports health care providers to improve services for pregnant women and new moms facing depression and related behavioral health issues.

Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program (MIECHV)
MIECHV home visitors work with pregnant women and new mothers to improve their health and access to care. Supports can include pregnancy and post-pregnancy care, reducing substance use, and screening for depression and intimate partner violence.

Healthy Start Initiative: Eliminating Disparities in Perinatal Health (Healthy Start)
Healthy Start provides direct access to well-women and maternity care to reduce maternal mortality and morbidity.

Women’s Preventive Services Initiative (WPSI)
WPSI identifies preventive services and screenings to improve women’s health across the life course. In February 2021, WPSI released the updated Well Woman Chart which includes age-based preventive service recommendations for women from adolescence to maturity.

MCHB Grand Challenges
The MCHB Grand Challenge prize competitions support innovative, technology-based solutions to improve maternal and child health. Two Challenges directly address maternal health:

Learn more about HRSA’s efforts to address maternal health.