The 14.5% infant mortality rate decline from 11.7 to 10.0 in African American infants in Medicaid expansion states was more than twice that in non-Medicaid expansion states (6.6%: 12.2 to 11.4; P = .012). However, the racial gap in infant mortality rates has been present since these data started being collected by the government and hospitals more than 100 years ago, and it has not significantly changed in more than 50 years.17 Higher rates of preterm births and low birth weights among African American women drive this gap: African American infants are 3.2 times more likely than non-Hispanic white infants to die from complications related to low birth weight.18 Across racial groups, more deaths occur in the neonatal period—from birth to 1 month—than in the post neonatal period—from 1 month to 1 year.19. The infant mortality rate in Guinea-Bissau ranks third in Africa with an approximate rate of 86 out of ,1000 live births. Protecting the health of mothers and infants is a critical measure of a country’s development. In addition, there are disparities in the infant mortality rate in Maryland by both race/ethnicity, with African American infants experiencing higher rates of infant mortality than other infants.1 Looking at trends Despite this progress, however, researchers and practitioners need better data on health disparities and a more systematic, continual review of maternal and infant deaths in order to develop prevention efforts and quality improvement programs. In addition to giving us key information about maternal and infant health, the infant mortality rate is an important marker of the overall health of a society. They … One of the Healthy People 2020 objectives is an infant mortality rate of no more than 6.0 infant deaths per 1,000 live births by … Healthy People 2020 is a federal plan that provides national objectives for improving the health of Americans. Black infants in America are now more than twice as likely to die as white infants — 11.3 per 1,000 black babies, compared with 4.9 per 1,000 white … The Black infant mortality rate stalled at 11.3/1,000 in 2012 and in 2017 the Black infant mortality rate was 10.9/1,000. The overall rate in 2019 (not counting December) was 7.75 per 1,000 live births, compared to 8.65 in 2018. In fact, the United Kingdom has recently urged the United Nations to include pregnant transgender or intersex individuals in its protections for pregnant people. In their investigation of U.S. maternal mortality, NPR and ProPublica collected more than 200 stories from African American mothers and discovered that feeling devalued and disrespected by medical providers was a unifying theme.61 Mothers also frequently reported that medical staff did not take their pain seriously, consistent with earlier studies that found pain is often undertreated in African American patients.62, Advocates, practitioners, and policymakers are spearheading efforts to raise awareness and address the dire state of maternal and infant mortality in the United States. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr68/nvsr68_10-508.pdf [474.53KB], https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr68/nvsr68_10-508.pdf. As the African-American infant death rate decreased and the white rate increased, the ratio between black and white rates decreased from 2.5 in 2017 to 1.9 in 2018. However, these changes only partly explain the growing number of recorded maternal deaths in the last decades. Served 364 African-American women between the ages of 18-34, having zero preventable infant deaths and better-than-average rates of pre-term and low-birthweight deliveries. Obesity—which is associated with pregnancy complications such as preeclampsia29—predicts both maternal and infant mortality and is more prevalent among African American women.30 Yet a recent study from the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene showed that African American women of normal weight were still at higher risk of dying in the perinatal period than non-African American obese women.31 A related study comparing infant mortality rates of obese African American and non-Hispanic white mothers showed that non-Hispanic white women experienced uniformly lower risk.32 Thus, higher rates of obesity among African American women do not explain the racial disparity in infant or maternal mortality. Infant Mortality Among African Americans Project. The Native American infant death rate is comparible to the African American rate; the racial disparity between Native Americans and whites is about the same as African Americans (2.6 Native American deaths for every white infant … The African American infant mortality rate reached an all-time low, decreasing by 9% since 2016 to 12.2 in 2018, but it is still more than twice the white infant mortality rate at 5.0 in 2018. Search: Source:  CDC 2019. While differences in maternal mental health may not be enough to explain the gap in birth outcomes between African American women and non-Hispanic white women, they should not be ignored. News Release. The infant mortality rate for South Africa in 2018 was 27.238 deaths per 1000 live births, a 4.02% decline from 2017. Mortality rate, infant, male (per 1,000 live births) Mortality rate, infant, female (per 1,000 live births) Survival to age 65, female (% of cohort) Death rate, crude (per 1,000 people) Contraceptive prevalence, any methods (% of women ages 15-49) Helped over 1,000 non-pregnant women improve knowledge around infant mortality, health literacy, healthy living … Infant mortality rate decline was greater in Medicaid expansion states, with greater declines among African American infants. https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/12/30/574514217/erica-garner-who-became-an-activist-after-her-fathers-death-dies, https://www.bustle.com/p/after-erica-garners-death-we-need-to-talk-about-how-maternal-mortality-affects-black-women-7739678, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/oct/23/uk-lobbies-for-trans-rights-in-un-treaty-but-allows-contentious-pregnant-women-term, https://www.cdc.gov/reproductivehealth/maternalinfanthealth/pmss.html, 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https://www.huffingtonpost.com/nia-hamm/depression-african-american-women_b_5836320.html, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8942508, https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/women/reports/2017/11/17/443051/suffering-in-silence/, https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2013/06/17/192730233/for-people-of-color-a-housing-market-partially-hidden-from-view, https://scholar.harvard.edu/files/alixwinter/files/sampson_winter_2016.pdf, https://ocrdata.ed.gov/Downloads/CRDC-Early-Childhood-Education-Snapshot.pdf, https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/women/news/2017/09/28/439953/economics-of-misogyny/, https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/women/reports/2016/10/03/145208/the-missing-conversation-about-work-and-family/, https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/08/05/72-percent-blackfatherhood_n_5648759.html, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3740218/, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1470581/, https://www.migrationpolicy.org/research/CBI-infant-health, http://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/abs/10.2105/AJPH.76.12.1416, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3881604/, https://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=98, https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1186/s40985-016-0025-4.pdf, https://www.reproductiverights.org/node/861, https://academic.oup.com/aje/article/152/5/413/149445, https://www.cdc.gov/reproductivehealth/maternalinfanthealth/pregcomplications.htm, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4939479/, http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/early/2017/08/24/peds.2017-0918, https://dma.ncdhhs.gov/providers/programs-services/family-planning-and-maternity/pregnancy-medical-home, https://mchb.hrsa.gov/maternal-child-health-initiatives/collaborative-improvement-innovation-networks-coiins, https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/senate-bill/1112/text, http://www.postpartum.net/professionals/legislation/, ‮g​r​o​.​s​s​e​r​g​o​r​p​n​a​c​i​r​e​m​a​@​r​e​g​r​e​b​e​e​s​c‭, 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