Race-Based Disparities in Infant Mortality and Premature Births

The National Center for Health Statistics (part of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) has released its most recent infant mortality rates for 2013. The good news is that the rate is at a record low of 5.96 deaths per 1,000 live births, a 13% drop in the past ten years.

The bad news is twofold. The U.S. ranks last in infant mortality rates among the 26 most developed nations, with rates three times higher than Finland’s and Japan’s and far higher than even poorer countries like Hungary and Poland.

Far worse is the fact that infant mortality among African Americans is more than twice as high, at 11.1 deaths per 1,000 births, as that of white Americans. Similarly, premature births are much higher for black Americans than whites: 16% v. 10%.

The disparity reflects the many race-based inequalities still rampant in the United States: unequal access to health care, delayed maternity care, lower rates of insurance coverage, lower incomes, and lower overall family wealth, among many others.