Premier Launches Maternal Prenatal Risk Index to Predict Severe Complications — Premier, Inc.

Event summary

Premier published a study in The Lancet introducing the maternal Prenatal Risk Index (m-PRI), a mortality-informed framework for identifying severe maternal morbidity (SMM) risks.
The index was developed using data from 7.1 million inpatient delivery hospitalizations across 864 hospitals from 2016 to 2023.
The m-PRI incorporates 28 clinically relevant conditions and demonstrated stronger predictive performance than existing systems like the Obstetric Comorbidity Scoring System (OCSS).
Conditions such as placenta accreta spectrum, chronic renal disease, and acquired cardiac disease showed the strongest associations with SMM severity.

The big picture

Premier’s m-PRI addresses a critical gap in maternal health by providing a standardized, data-driven framework for assessing and managing severe complications. This aligns with broader industry trends toward predictive analytics and value-based care, particularly as the U.S. grapples with high rates of maternal morbidity. The collaboration with HHS underscores the potential for scalable impact across healthcare systems.

What we're watching

Adoption Pace: How quickly hospitals and healthcare systems will integrate the m-PRI into their clinical workflows.
Regulatory Impact: Whether the m-PRI will influence maternal health policy and quality improvement efforts at a national level.
Competitive Dynamics: How Premier’s data-driven approach to maternal risk assessment will position it against competitors in the healthcare analytics space.