CDC Levels of Care Assessment Tool (CDC LOCATe®)

Risk-appropriate care is a strategy to ensure that pregnant women and infants get the right care in the right place at the right time. To provide a consistent approach to assessing risk-appropriate care, CDC developed the CDC Levels of Care Assessment Tool (CDC LOCATe®).

Risk-appropriate care is a strategy to improve health outcomes for pregnant women and infants. Women and infants with complex medical conditions should receive care at facilities with a full range of specialists and equipment. Examples of complex medical conditions include severe heart conditions or infants born before 32 weeks of gestation.

However, the definitions and monitoring of levels of care vary widely among states. CDC developed the CDC Levels of Care Assessment Tool to assist states in assessing facility levels of maternal and neonatal care.

CDC LOCATe® can help states and other jurisdictions create standardized assessments of levels of maternal and neonatal care.

It is based on the most recent guidelines and policy statements issued by the following:

American Academy of Pediatrics

American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists

Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine

Agencies or organizations with existing relationships with hospitals in the area serve as state champions to facilitate the following steps:

Identify collaborators to encourage facilities to use CDC LOCATe®.

Build relationships to work toward statewide participation.

Send the CDC LOCATe® web link to facilities in the state.

Follow up with facilities that don't respond.

CDC assesses levels of maternal and neonatal care.

CDC sends results to state that can be used and shared as desired.

CDC LOCATe® produces standardized assessments. Participating states can see levels of care by facility and the distribution of staff and services throughout the state.

States can combine data from CDC LOCATe® with data from other public health sources and analyze it. States can examine how levels of care and volume of services provided by a facility may affect health outcomes.

CDC LOCATe® is designed for public health decision makers. It creates opportunities for informed conversations among partners who work in risk-appropriate care, such as:

State and local public health departments.

State Perinatal Quality Collaboratives (PQCs).

Health care providers working in maternal and neonatal care.

The results can be a starting point for talking about how to improve health outcomes for women and infants.

View Participating States and Success Stories

Frequently Asked Questions About CDC LOCATe®

Levels of Neonatal Care from the American Academy of Pediatrics

Levels of Maternal Care from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine

LoMC Levels of Maternal Care from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists

Levels of Medical Care for Your Newborn from the March of Dimes