In their letter, Drs Turok, Clark, and Esplin make an important point: access to safe and effective family planning options is an important aid to reducing preterm birth rates. This is true both in the United States and globally. Such access also has the related benefit of reducing maternal mortality.

Preterm birth has complex biological, environmental, and societal causes. Thus, it is not surprising that it will take an array of complex biological, environmental, and societal approaches to reduce its prevalence and resulting mortality and morbidity.