In the last two decades, China has made substantial progress in reducing maternal, infant and under-five mortality. According to government statistics, China's maternal mortality rate (MMR) dropped from 94.7 mother deaths per 100 000 live births in 1990 to 48.3 in 2004. Maternal haemorrhage, hypertension, embolism and sepsis — all largely preventable or treatable — cause 77 per cent of maternal deaths in China.

Nationally, the percentage of births delivered in hospitals increased from 39 per cent to 68 per cent between 1992 and 2002, in rural areas these figures grew from 22 per cent to 62 per cent and in urban areas from 87 to 93 per cent. The proportion of total births (inside or outside a hospital or clinic) attended by skilled personnel had risen to 87 per cent by 2001, and the percentage of children born in hospitals grew from 50.6 per cent in 1990 to 82.8 per cent in 2004. Related to these trends, China's infant mortality rate had lowered from 50.2 in 1990 to 21.5 per 1000 live births by 2004. The main causes leading to neonatal deaths include asphyxia, pneumonia, premature birth and low birth weight. The under-five mortality rate dropped from 61 per 1000 in 1991 to 25 per 1000 in 2004.

Nevertheless, national figures for maternal, infant and under-five mortality mask large disparities, which exist between urban and rural populations, and across different regions of China. For example, maternal mortality in the urban areas in 2004 was 26.1 compared to 63 per 100,000 live births in rural areas. Similarly, infant mortaltiy rate in the urban areas in 2004 was 10.1 compared to 24.5 per 1000 live births in the rural areas. Maternal death rates are highest among the rural poor and migrant populations, and in those regions with least access to antenatal and intrapartum care, such as the western provinces.