U.S. birthing persons are more likely to die from complications related to pregnancy or childbirth than in our peer nations, and many health inequities are present among those who are dying. ORWH recently led the development of a special issue of the Journal of Women’s Health , bringing MMM to the forefront. The special issue offers a research road map to help end this public health crisis. It showcases the work of NIH, other Federal agencies, and the scientific community to understand contributing factors, improve care, and prevent these devastating losses. We encourage you to review the special issue’s open-access articles to learn more.

In response to rising U.S. rates of MMM, NIH is supporting efforts to address this public health crisis in a number of ways:

• ORWH held the inaugural webinar in its Diverse Voices: COVID-19, Intersectionality, and the Health of Women speaker series on January 27, 2021. It featured Ana Langer, M.D., and Jewel Gausman, Sc.D., M.H.S., who discussed intersectionality and highlighted maternal and perinatal care in the context of COVID-19.

• To further encourage people to stay engaged and informed around MMM, ORWH hosted a Twitter chat on February 24. Thank you if you were able to participate! In addition, ORWH’s “Maternal Health Mondays” on Twitter and Facebook will bring attention to MMM by highlighting one of the 21 articles in the Journal of Women’s Health’s special issue articles over the next several months.
• To rapidly award and fund regional coalitions testing evidence-based interventions to improve heart, lung, and sleep health outcomes before and during pregnancy among disproportionately affected populations, NIH issued the Maternal Health Community Implementation Project. Applications are due March 29, 2021.

• The NIH Implementing a Maternal health and PRegnancy Outcomes Vision for Everyone (IMPROVE) initiative focuses on the leading causes of maternal mortality in the U.S. and prioritizes comprehensive, interdisciplinary research that engages communities with high rates of maternal deaths and complications. Two new funding opportunities have recently been released under this initiative for FY 2021:
• • Notice of Special Interest (NOSI): Small Business Initiatives for Innovative Diagnostic Technology for Improving Outcomes for Maternal Health, with a first application due date of April 6, 2021
  • Notice of Special Interest (NOSI): Administrative Supplements and Urgent Competitive Revisions for NIH Grants to Add or Expand Research Focused on Maternal Health, Structural Racism and Discrimination, and COVID-19, with applications due on April 14, 2021

• To expand upon research and research capacity building in States that have less access to health care and suffer poorer health outcomes in the U.S., NIH reissued Notice of Special Interest (NOSI): Administrative Supplements for Research on Women’s Health in the IDeA States with a particular interest in maternal and infant morbidity and mortality. The first application due date is April 14, 2021.
• To test the effectiveness of an implementation-ready intervention designed to promote cardiovascular health (CVH) and address CVH disparities in marginalized birthing people and children in clinical or community sites, NIH issued the Early Intervention to Promote Cardiovascular Health of Mothers and Children (ENRICH) program. ENRICH Multisite Clinical Centers (Collaborative UG3/UH3 Clinical Trial Required) and ENRICH Multisite Resource and Coordinating Center (U24 Clinical Trial Required) have a first application due date of June 11, 2021.
• NIH will fund research of racial disparities in pregnancy-related complications and deaths. This opportunity will provide research grants to six institutions to support original, innovative, and multidisciplinary efforts to advance the understanding, prevention, and reduction of pregnancy-related complications and deaths among disproportionately affected women.

For more NIH resources on maternal health and MMM, feel free to visit the following:

• MMM Web Portal
• MMM Booklet
• MMM Video 
• MMM-related Funding Opportunities
• Spring 2019 issue of Women’s Health in Focus at NIH
• ORWH Director’s Message: Toward an Improved Vision for Maternal Health and Pregnancy Outcomes
• COVID-19 and Maternal Health Webpage

For more on other U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) resources relevant to maternal health and MMM, please visit the following:

• Healthy Women, Healthy Pregnancies, Healthy Futures: Action Plan to Improve Maternal Health in America
• The Surgeon General’s Call to Action to Improve Maternal Health
• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Hear Her campaign
• OS-PCORTF State Data for Conducting Patient-Centered Outcomes Research to Improve Maternal Health Stakeholder Discussion Report