On January 23, we recognize Maternal Health Awareness Day. It's a day that we focus on the state of maternal health in the U.S. and how organizations can support both current and expecting mothers.

In the U.S. at least, there is a significant gap between the care mothers and expectant mothers typically receive and what they should expect.

Across broad swaths of our country, millions of women are simply unable to receive maternal care. In fact, over 2.2 million women who are within typical childbearing years are located in what experts call maternity care deserts. Maternity care deserts are defined as a county that doesn't have hospitals that provide obstetric care, birth centers, OBGYNs, or certified nurse-midwives.