Dr. Boufford says that the medical community also must examine its practices. For example, there may be a correlation between maternal mortality and Caesarean births, or so-called "C-Sections," which are performed in nearly half of all deliveries in some New York hospitals. The report, released Friday, found that 79 percent of New York women who died in childbirth had undergone the procedure.

"Now, that may be because they are sicker and they needed it, and C-Sections certainly save lives," says Boufford. "There is no question about that. But we need to understand much more about that. And I think the comfort with technology may have gotten ahead of what may be the best in terms of the management of the patient."

Government health departments nationwide are studying new strategies to protect maternal and child health, such as those outlined by the United Nations Millennium Goals, which calls for education, economic development and community empowerment to save lives and eliminate preventable suffering.