SEC. 2. FINDINGS; PURPOSES. 
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 
(1) The aggregate pregnancy-related mortality 
ratio in the United States as measured by the Cen-
ters for Disease Control and Prevention Pregnancy 
Mortality Surveillance System was 14.5 for the 8- 
year period 1998 through 2005, higher than any 
other period in the previous 20 years. Although this 
increase may reflect changes in data collection meth-
ods by the States, this reported increase, along with 
no improvement in previous years remains a source 
of great concern for the Centers for Disease Control 
and Prevention, and health care providers and pa-
tient advocates such as the Joint Commission, the 
American College of Obstetricians and Gyne-
cologists, and Amnesty International. 
(2) The Centers for Disease Control and Pre-
vention has found that maternal deaths should be 
investigated through State-based maternal death re-
views and maternal quality collaboratives, as these 
entities are well-situated to identify deaths, review 
the factors associated with them, and take action 
with the findings in order to institute the systemic 
changes needed to decrease pregnancy-related and 
pregnancy-associated mortality. 
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(3) Women of color and low-income women face 
added risks in terms of death, complications, and ac-
cess to quality health care. African-American women 
are three to four times more likely to die of preg-
nancy-related complications than White women. In 
2006 the Centers for Disease Control and Preven-
tion reported that the maternal mortality ratio for 
non-Hispanic White women was 9.1 deaths per 
100,000 births compared with 34.8 deaths per 
100,000 births for non-Hispanic Black women. 
These rates and disparities have not improved in 
more than 20 years. 
(4) Healthy People 2010, a comprehensive, na-
tionwide health promotion and disease prevention 
agenda launched by the Department of Health and 
Human Services, set a target goal of reducing ma-
ternal mortality in the United States to 4.3 deaths 
per 100,000 live births by 2010. In 2007, the na-
tional maternal mortality ratio was 12.7 deaths per 
100,000 live births. 
(5) Severe complications that result in women 
nearly dying, known as a ‘‘near miss’’ or severe mor-
bidity, according to some estimates, increased by 25 
percent between 1998 and 2005, to approximately 
34,000 cases a year. However, there is no scientific 
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consensus on uniform definitions of severe maternal 
morbidity and best practices for data collection, 
making it difficult to measure the full extent of se-
vere morbidity and developing evidence-based inter-
ventions. 
(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are the fol-
lowing: 
(1) To establish governmental accountability 
and a shared responsibility between States and the 
Federal Government to identify opportunities for im-
provement in quality of care and system changes, 
and to educate and inform health institutions and 
professionals, women, and families about preventing 
pregnancy-related deaths and complications and re-
ducing disparities. 
(2) To develop a model for States to operate 
maternal mortality reviews and assess the various 
factors that may have contributed to maternal mor-
tality, including quality of care, racial disparities, 
and systemic problems in the delivery of health care, 
and to develop appropriate interventions to reduce 
and prevent such deaths. 
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SEC. 3. UNIFORM STATE MATERNAL MORTALITY REVIEW 
COMMITTEES 
ON 
PREGNANCY-RELATED 
DEATHS. 
(a) CONDITION OF RECEIPT OF PAYMENTS FROM 
ALLOTMENT UNDER MATERNAL
AND CHILD HEALTH 
SERVICE BLOCK GRANT.—Title V of the Social Security 
Act (42 U.S.C. 701 et seq.) is amended by adding at the 
end the following new section: 
‘‘SEC. 514. UNIFORM STATE MATERNAL MORTALITY RE-
VIEW 
COMMITTEES 
ON 
PREGNANCY-RE-
LATED DEATHS. 
‘‘(a) GRANTS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 
provision of this title, for each of fiscal years 2012 
through 2018, in addition to payments from allot-
ments for States under section 502 for such year, 
the Secretary shall, subject to paragraph (3) and in 
accordance with the criteria established under para-
graph (2), award grants to States to— 
‘‘(A) carry out the activities described in 
subsection (b)(1); 
‘‘(B) establish a State maternal mortality 
review committee, in accordance with subsection 
(b)(2), to carry out the activities described in 
subsection (b)(2)(A), and to establish the proc-
esses described in subsection (b)(1); 
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‘‘(C) ensure the State department of 
health carries out the applicable activities de-
scribed in subsection (b)(3), with respect to 
pregnancy-related deaths occurring within the 
State during such fiscal year; 
‘‘(D) implement and use the comprehensive 
case abstraction form developed under sub-
section (c), in accordance with such subsection; 
and 
‘‘(E) provide for public disclosure of infor-
mation, in accordance with subsection (e). 
‘‘(2) CRITERIA.—The Secretary shall establish 
criteria for determining eligibility for and the 
amount of a grant awarded to a State under para-
graph (1). Such criteria shall provide that in the 
case of a State that receives such a grant for a fiscal 
year and is determined by the Secretary to have not 
used such grant in accordance with this section, 
such State shall not be eligible for such a grant for 
any subsequent fiscal year. 
‘‘(3) AUTHORIZATION
OF
APPROPRIATIONS.— 
For purposes of carrying out the grant program 
under this section, including for administrative pur-
poses, there is authorized to be appropriated 
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