United States Gets Poor Marks for Premature Birth Rates

There is an expectation that developing nations will score poorly in most, if not all, aspects of health care. Pregnancy and childbirth statistics in Africa and parts of Asia and South America can be particularly sobering, but we expect more in the United States. Unfortunately, we don't always get what we want.

The increase in premature babies being born throughout the country contributed to the U.S. receiving a "D" rating by the March of Dimes. In their first annual Premature Birth Report Card, released November 12th, not one single state within the U.S. received an “A”. Only one state—Vermont—received a “B,” 23 states received a “D,” and 18 states plus the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico got failing grades.

The Premature Birth Report Card was released on the sixth annual Prematurity Awareness Day, which is meant to draw attention to preterm babies, which affects more than 530,000 infants yearly in the United States alone. Premature Birth (arriving before 37 weeks’ gestation) is one of the leading causes of newborn deaths and it is a major cause of lifelong illnesses such as hearing loss, cerebral palsy, asthma, blindness, learning disabilities, and other chronic illnesses.

The March of Dimes President, Dr. Jennifer L. Howse, recently stated in a news release that, “It is unacceptable that our nation is failing so many preterm babies. We are determined to find and implement solutions to prevent preterm birth. Based on research, best clinical practices, and improved education for moms.” The March of Dimes urged many people to sign the 2008 Petition for Preemies to send a message to state and federal lawmakers, for them to action on this issue immediately.

For the Premature Birth Report Card, the organization compared the actual preterm birth rates to the national Healthy People 2010 objective of lowering the premature birth rate to 7.6 percent of all live births in the U.S. The preterm birth rate for the U.S. was 12.7 percent in the year 2005, the most recent year that the statistics were available.

According to a 2006 Institute of Medicine report, since the year 1990, the premature birth rate in the U.S. has shown a rise of 20 percent, and these preterm births cost the nation approximately $26 billion annually. In addition to the state rankings, the report card has also analyzed several factors that contribute to premature birth, including uninsured women able of appropriate age to have children and smoking, and prevention measures being taken.

The report calls for:

• Increased federal support for preterm babies, related research to help learn more about the causes of preterm birth, developing strategies for the prevention of preterm births, along with improved outcomes and care for the infants that are premature.
• Reviews that are voluntary from hospital leaders of all Caesarean-section births and labor that was induced before the 39th week of gestation, in an effort to help reverse the U.S.’s rising preterm birth rate.
• These reviews should ensure that all C-sections and inductions performed meet professional guidelines that have been established.
• Makers of policies will need to improve access to health coverage for women who are of age to have a child and to help support smoking-cessation programs as part of our maternity care.
• Businesses should create workplaces that support the mother and infant health, such as providing private areas where new mothers can pump breast milk, access to flextime schedules, and information on how to achieve a healthy pregnancy and childbirth.

Helen Darling, the president of the National Business Group on Health stated that many employers can play a very important role in helping their employees and dependents have healthy infants and healthy families. Darling also said, “The March of Dimes’ Premature Birth Report Card provides guidance on best practices that can help any size business.”

If you would like to see how your state ranked on the Premature Birth Report Card, you can see the March of Dimes color-coded map here.