I 
115TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5761 
To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to submit to the 
Congress on a biennial basis a national plan to reduce the rate of 
maternal mortality. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 10, 2018 
Mr. KRISHNAMOORTHI (for himself, Ms. HERRERA BEUTLER, Mr. RYAN of 
Ohio, Ms. BLUNT ROCHESTER, Ms. NORTON, Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia, 
Ms. WILSON of Florida, Ms. MICHELLE LUJAN GRISHAM of New Mexico, 
Mr. COHEN, Mr. HASTINGS, and Ms. HANABUSA) introduced the fol-
lowing bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Com-
merce 
A BILL 
To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to 
submit to the Congress on a biennial basis a national 
plan to reduce the rate of maternal mortality. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Ending Maternal Mor-
tality Act of 2018’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
The Congress finds as follows: 
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(1) Four million American women give birth 
each year, and an estimated 700 will die annually 
during pregnancy, childbirth, or the postpartum pe-
riod. 
(2) The United States ranks 47th for maternal 
mortality rate globally, and is one of only eight 
countries in which the maternal mortality rate is ris-
ing. It is estimated that, between 2000 and 2014, 
the United States maternal mortality rate grew by 
26.6 percent. 
(3) Common causes of maternal mortality in-
clude 
obstetric 
hemorrhage, 
hypertension 
and 
preeclampsia, sepsis, and substance use disorder and 
overdose. 
(4) More than half of maternal deaths are likely 
preventable. 
(5) Additionally, 65,000 American women expe-
rience severe maternal morbidity (SMM) annually, 
meaning the physical and psychological conditions 
that result from, or are aggravated by, pregnancy 
have an adverse effect on the health of a woman. 
(6) Racial and ethnic disparities persist across 
the Nation, and Black women are three to four 
times more likely to die from complications of preg-
nancy or childbirth than White women. 
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SEC. 3. PLAN FOR REDUCING MATERNAL MORTALITY. 
The Public Health Service Act is amended by insert-
ing after section 229 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 237a) the 
following new section: 
‘‘SEC. 229A. PLAN FOR REDUCING MATERNAL MORTALITY. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 
date of enactment of the Ending Maternal Mortality Act 
of 2018, and biennially thereafter, the Secretary shall de-
velop and submit to the Congress a national plan to reduce 
the rate of preventable maternal mortality, with the goals 
of— 
‘‘(1) cutting the rate in half over the 10 years 
following such date of enactment; and 
‘‘(2) eliminating preventable maternal deaths by 
the date that is 20 years after such date of enact-
ment. 
‘‘(b) OBJECTIVES; STRATEGY.—In each biennial plan 
under subsection (a), the Secretary shall include— 
‘‘(1) a list of objectives for meeting the goals 
described in subsection (a); and 
‘‘(2) a strategy for implementing the plan 
across the agencies and offices of the Department of 
Health and Human Services. 
‘‘(c) SPECIFIC ISSUES.—In each biennial plan under 
subsection (a), the Secretary shall address the following: 
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‘‘(1) Increasing public understanding of mater-
nal mortality and severe maternal morbidity, includ-
ing risk factors, warning signs, and prevention of 
common causes like hemorrhage, preeclampsia, and 
substance use disorders and other mental health 
conditions. 
‘‘(2) Improving understanding of the root 
causes of maternal mortality and severe maternal 
morbidity, including both medical and socioeconomic 
factors. 
‘‘(3) Improving data collection, including State- 
level reporting. 
‘‘(4) Identifying at-risk populations and elimi-
nating disparities that persist based on a mother’s 
race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and geographic 
location. 
‘‘(5) Supporting and expanding maternal mor-
tality review committees that bring together public 
and private relevant stakeholders to review cases of 
pregnancy-related and pregnancy-associated com-
plications and deaths to make recommendations to 
improve the quality of care and outcomes. 
‘‘(6) Assessing hospital culture of safety in ma-
ternity care and how best to provide resources to im-
prove outcomes. 
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