The National Expert Committee on Maternal Mortality is composed of experts in obstetrics and gynecology, anesthesiologists, midwives, and epidemiologists. Established in 1996, its purpose is to identify and analyze cases of maternal death in France with a view to prevention. The confidential survey is described in the previous article. During the study period (1999–2001), the most common causes of maternal death were hemorrhage (21% of cases), complications of hypertension including strokes (11.3% of cases), amniotic fluid embolism (7.1% of cases), and infections (5% of cases). Overall, considering all direct obstetric causes combined, 52% of maternal deaths were deemed preventable by the National Expert Committee on Maternal Mortality: 73% for hemorrhage, 44% for hypertensive patients, and 71% for infections. (Introduction)