A planning committee of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine will plan a 1.5-day public workshop that examines the current state of maternal health in the United States and explores the factors needed to enable communities and healthcare systems to be more effective in reducing maternal morbidity and mortality and improving outcomes for mother and child through the fourth trimester.

The workshop will feature invited presentations and discussions that will explore:

· the current state of evidence on maternal health and maternal mortality (and potential future needs for better data collection)

· the factors shaping maternal health and outcomes, including social determinants, and the role early life events play in shaping health trajectories, and access to and the safety and quality of maternal health care

· current promising evidenced-informed practices for improving maternal health and reducing maternal mortality from selected states/health systems (and discuss the potential to scale the approaches)

· promising models and approaches that apply a life course approach to advance maternal health including the health of the child through the fourth trimester.

· research needs across the life course to improve outcomes for mother and child including preconception through the fourth trimester.

The planning committee will plan and organize the workshop, select and invite speakers and discussants, and moderate the discussions. A proceedings of the presentations and discussions at the workshop will be prepared by a designated rapporteur in accordance with institutional guidelines.