Maternal Health Awareness Day

Assessing the state of maternal morbidity

Maternal Health Awareness Day is January 23, 2026. This year’s theme is Holding Ground on Maternal Health. NICHQ joins the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) in raising awareness about the maternal mortality crisis and highlighting the importance of respectful, evidence-based care.

It’s Time to Turn the Tide

Ensuring Access to Respectful, High-Quality Care for ALL

According to data from 2021, the majority of maternal deaths occurred between seven and 365 days postpartum, and more than 80% of pregnancy-related deaths were deemed preventable by Maternal Mortality Review Committees (MMRCs), funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The five most frequent contributing factors to preventing these deaths were knowledge, quality of care, lack of continuity of care, lack of financial resources, and substance use disorder.

The report lists the leading underlying causes of pregnancy-related deaths in the U.S. as:

  • 33% – Infection
  • 23% – Mental health conditions (including deaths to suicide and overdose/poisoning related to substance use disorder)
  • 10% – Cardiovascular conditions (including cardiomyopathy)
  • 9% – Hemorrhage (excluding aneurysms or cerebrovascular accident)
  • 5% – Embolism
  • 5% – Amniotic fluid embolism
  • 2% – Injury

NICHQ INitiatives

Our Work to Prevent Maternal Mortality

We’re grateful to have insight from a representative team of experts and people with lived experience from different backgrounds on these project-related initiatives to prevent maternal mortality and increase access to respectful, quality care.

Improving Respectful Care Through Hear Her

NICHQ will leverage its role as the coordinating center for the National Network of Perinatal Quality Collaboratives (NNPQC), as well as the Hear Her Campaign and related respources, to improve and promote respectful birth and maternal health care.

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Maternal Health Action & Resource Center (MHARC)

The newly established MHARC will provide capacity building assistance (CBA), training, and technical assistance (TTA) to State Maternal Health Innovation awardees and other Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) – Maternal and Child Health Bureau award recipients. This center will broadly share and disseminate information about evidence-based strategies and guidance with the purpose of enhancing and strengthening recipients’ ability to improve maternal health outcomes for all populations in their communities in order to advance maternal health nationally.

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Supporting Healthy Start Performance Project

Healthy Start is a community-based federal program seeking to eliminate disparities in infant mortality and perinatal outcomes by working to improve systems of community care in communities with infant mortality rates at least 1.5 times the U.S. national average.

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Community-Centered Hospital Initiative

The Community-Centered Hospital Initiative (CCHI) centers communities to uplift their capacity as leaders in improving perinatal and infant health by recognizing their expertise and building on their existing practices and processes.

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NICHQ Insights

Reading List for Maternal Health Awareness Month

At NICHQ, we are committed to improving care for mothers and pregnant patients and eliminating preventable maternal death. Check out our blogs to learn how you can support this initiative.

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A Mother-Centered Approach to Treating Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome

With rising opioid addiction rates, increasingly high numbers of babies are being born with neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS). Babies with NAS may suffer from multiple withdrawal symptoms including tremors, sleeping problems, irritability, fever, diarrhea, difficulty eating and gaining weight, and seizures. Researchers at Yale-New Haven Children’s Hospital have published findings (Hospital Pediatrics, January, 2018) that…

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Additional Support, Compassion Needed for Maternal Mental Health

 CDC research shows about 1 in 8 women with a recent live birth experience symptoms of postpartum depression. Estimates of the number of women affected by postpartum depression differ by age, race/ethnicity, and state.  In recognition of Maternal Mental Health Awareness Month, we’re taking some time to reflect on maternal mental health and the experiences of…

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As Unplanned Pregnancy Rates Drop, Births Improve

Simply put, fewer unplanned pregnancies means more healthy moms and babies. It’s a fact that has ignited efforts to address unplanned pregnancies as a strategy to improve infant mortality rates.

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Doula Support Improves Maternal and Child Health Outcomes, Patient and Family Engagement

In honor of World Doula Week, celebrated annually March 22-28, The National Institute for Children’s Health Quality (NICHQ) held a conversation with LaToshia Rouse, CD/PCD(DONA), owner of Birth Sisters Doula Services. Rouse currently serves as the Patient and Family Engagement Co-Chair of the National Network for Perinatal Quality Collaboratives Executive Committee and joined NICHQ’s Board…

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Driving Statewide Improvement in Perinatal Care

Across the nation, 43 state and multi-state perinatal quality collaboratives (PQCs) are working to improve health outcomes for moms and babies. Comprised of multidisciplinary teams, PQCs work with clinical teams, experts and stakeholders, including patients and families, to advance evidence-informed clinical practices, reduce variation, optimize resources, and address gaps in perinatal care. Launching and sustaining a…

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Eliminating the Consequences of Maternal Depression

Elaine DeaKyne was excited about her first pregnancy and, physically, she sailed through it without complications. Looking back, she recalls feeling anxiety during her third trimester, but she didn’t bring it up with her doctors because, as she says, “I didn’t know it was something I should talk about.” Her anxiety heightened after her daughter…

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Smiling doctor holding hand on African American boy who came with parents for medical exam at pediatric clinic.

Empowering families through maternal and child health services

UnitedHealthcare Community & State is working with the National Institute for Children’s Health Quality (NICHQ) through UnitedHealthcare’s Community Collaborative Partnership Program to address family health needs across the U.S. This program aims to promote sustainable, community-centered solutions to reduce infant mortality and improve maternal and child health outcomes.

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Moms Deserve Better Care In The Fourth Trimester

In the weeks following childbirth, mothers must adapt to plunging hormones, recover from birth and learn how to feed and care for a new infant. Amid these challenges, moms receive minimal support from the healthcare system. Postpartum visits are typically scheduled four to six weeks after birth, leaving moms to cope on their own for…

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Taking on a Leading cause of Maternal Death: Improving Postpartum Hemorrhage Care

Cases of postpartum hemorrhage are on the rise, occurring in an estimated 3 percent of deliveries in the United States, or more than 100,000 births a year. These are alarming numbers, especially given that postpartum hemorrhage is a leading cause of pregnancy-related deaths. A recent study from the CDC Foundation notes that hospitals may be able to prevent up…

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Wrap-Around Mental Health Services Needed for Mothers, Pregnant Patients, and Families

In recognition of Maternal Mental Health Awareness Month, we’re taking some time to reflect on maternal mental health and the experiences of a parent who is also a maternal and child health researcher. Read reflections from NICHQ Associate Director of Research and Evaluation Meera Menon, PhD, and learn more about her experiences navigating these roles and thoughts about how public health practitioners can hold maternal mental health more compassionately for all new parents, but especially those negatively impacted by social determinants of health.

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Additional Articles & Resources

Maternal Health Action and Resource Center

A central hub for training, support, and skill-building for organizations and individuals working to improve maternal health and ensure safe pregnancies across the United States.

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The Power of PQCs

Video showing the impact that PQCs have on the communities they serve. Produced by the NNPQC.

Watch the Video

Pregnancy Mortality Surveillance System (PMSS)

The CDC conducts national surveillance to better understand the risk factors for and causes of pregnancy-related deaths.

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Perinatal Quality Collaboratives

Perinatal Quality Collaboratives (PQCs) are state or multi-state networks of multidisciplinary teams, working to improve maternal and infant health outcomes. PQCs accomplish this by advancing evidence-informed clinical practices and processes using quality improvement (QI) principles to address gaps in care. NICHQ serves as the national coordinating center for the National Network of Perinatal Quality Collaboratives (NNPQC). The NNPQC provides resources and expertise to nationwide state-based PQCs with the goal of deepening and accelerating best practices to improve the quality of care in hospitals.

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CDC Hear Her Campaign

a national campaign supporting CDC’s efforts to prevent pregnancy-related deaths by sharing potentially life-saving messages about urgent maternal warning signs.

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