Maternal Health Awareness Day

For our fifth Maternal Health Awareness Day observance, ACOG has chosen the theme Holding Ground on Maternal Health. We’re inviting the public, policy makers, health care administrators, and stakeholders to join the ACOG community and our partners in reaffirming our staunch commitment to preventing maternal deaths and advancing respectful, evidence-based care.

CDC estimates that more than 80% of deaths during and after pregnancy are preventable. It’s clear that evidence-based, actionable solutions can and will save lives—solutions like equitable access to prenatal care and specialist care for those who need it; birthing facilities that are equipped to meet the needs of all patients, including those facing pregnancy-related emergencies; and the integration and adoption of patient-safety and quality improvement approaches to better prepare care teams for all the challenges that can occur during the perinatal period. 

We know what steps can turn the tide on maternal deaths, but federal investment in maternal health programs has waned. Now we face a new threat: losing ground on all the progress we’ve made toward ending preventable maternal deaths. So much of the work done to help save lives has been upended, as efforts to address issues such as racial health inequities have been attacked or fallen under scrutiny.

What is ACOG doing?

ACOG continues to advocate for health policies that will increase access to care, even as patients across the country face the depletion of health care coverage due to legislative actions and legal challenges. For example, one ACOG-endorsed bill, the Supporting Healthy Moms and Babies Act, would make prenatal care and delivery more affordable for families.

ACOG recognizes that work to address maternal morbidity and mortality must be evidence-based, comprehensive, and meaningful. That’s why ACOG has chosen to decline federal funding for our ongoing maternal mortality work, understanding that it is critical for us to advance patient-centered care in a way that meets all patients’ needs while recognizing that some populations are disproportionately harmed by the maternal morbidity and mortality crisis. We remain committed to this important work.

About Maternal Health Awareness Day

In 2016, the New Jersey Section of ACOG joined the Tara Hansen Foundation; the Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and the New Jersey Medical School; the New Jersey Obstetrical & Gynecological Society; the Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses; and the New Jersey Affiliate of the American College of Nurse-Midwives to request the establishment of a Maternal Health Awareness Day in New Jersey to raise all New Jersey residents’ awareness of maternal health issues. This effort came to legislative fruition in 2017 with the first Maternal Health Awareness Day celebration in New Jersey.

Enthusiasm for a District III-wide Maternal Health Awareness Day prompted all Sections within District III to begin educational programs to promote community, patient, and other stakeholder awareness of maternal health risks. Since 2021, ACOG has celebrated Maternal Health Awareness Day at a national level on January 23, joined by partners from across the United States.