Family planning and maternal mortality

Maternal mortality is an important public health concern that has gained increasing attention since the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Though low- and middle-resource countries are impacted most disparately by maternal mortality burden, the United States holds the highest maternal mortality ratio among similarly high-resource countries. As global health initiatives decreased the worldwide maternal mortality ratio, the United States experienced an increase in maternal mortality ratio in the same timeframe. Though the cause of this increase is multifactorial, a likely contributor may be limited access to family planning in the United States, which has one of the highest rates of unintended pregnancy among similar-resource countries. This review assesses medical literature to characterize the association between family planning and maternal mortality, as well as summarize common etiologies identified among studies to explain this relationship. We additionally found that, while access to family planning programs is associated with a decrease in maternal mortality, few studies completed in the United States unique health and political environment provide clear empirical evidence of maternal mortality burden reduction associated with family planning. A deeper understanding of the impact of family planning in the United States will be of interest to stakeholders and policymakers in the effort to decrease adverse maternal health outcomes.