For most families experiencing preterm birth, the infant(s)’ vulnerable health status will be the primary focus as the family adapts to this unexpected outcome. However, for a subset of families experiencing preterm birth, the mother also faces serious to potentially life-threatening complications. For these families, the burden of prematurity is compounded by the burden of the mother’s physical and emotional recovery from serious complications, as well as the partner’s emotional recovery from experiencing a situation where the health and potentially the lives of both the mother and the baby were at risk. The consequences of dual burden of severe maternal morbidity and preterm birth on the life of a young family may be profound. The purpose of this study is to explore the prevalence of this dual burden on families in California and in PTBi-CA geographies, including San Francisco and Fresno Counties and the city of Oakland.