H.R. 6238: NIH Implementing a Maternal health and PRegnancy Outcomes Vision for Everyone Act

This bill would create and continue an NIH program called the IMPROVE Initiative, focused on improving maternal health outcomes in the United States.

What the program would do

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director would be responsible for carrying out research and related activities aimed at:

• Reducing preventable maternal deaths and serious pregnancy-related health problems;
• Reducing differences in maternal health outcomes among different populations, especially where some groups have higher maternal death or complication rates than the national average;
• Improving health before, during, and after pregnancy for pregnant and postpartum women.

How it would work

The initiative would take an integrated approach to studying the causes of maternal mortality and serious maternal complications. That means NIH would look at multiple factors that may affect outcomes, including biological and behavioral factors, and build evidence about what works in different parts of the country.

The bill also directs NIH to focus on health disparities by:

• Supporting and evaluating community-based interventions for women who are disproportionately affected;
• Identifying risk factors and underlying biological mechanisms linked to major causes of maternal death and severe maternal illness in the United States.

Funding and administration

NIH would be allowed to use grants, contracts, cooperative agreements, or other arrangements to carry out the program. The bill authorizes $63.4 million per year for fiscal years 2026 through 2030 to support the initiative.

Relevant Companies

None found.