U.S. has second worst newborn death rate in modern world

[RedEarth]

An estimated 2 million babies die within their first 24 hours each year worldwide and the United States has the second worst newborn mortality rate in the developed world, according to a new report.

American babies are three times more likely to die in their first month as children born in Japan, and newborn mortality is 2.5 times higher in the United States than in Finland, Iceland or Norway, Save the Children researchers found.

Only Latvia, with six deaths per 1,000 live births, has a higher death rate for newborns than the United States, which is tied near the bottom of industrialized nations with Hungary, Malta, Poland and Slovakia with five deaths per 1,000 births.

"The United States has more neonatologists and neonatal intensive care beds per person than Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom, but its newborn rate is higher than any of those countries," said the annual State of the World's Mothers report.

The report, which analyzed data from governments, research institutions and international agencies, found higher newborn death rates among U.S. minorities and disadvantaged groups. For African-Americans, the mortality rate is nearly double that of the United States as a whole, with 9.3 deaths per 1,000 births.

http://www.cnn.com/2006/HEALTH/parenting/05/08/mothers.index/

........GOP solution.......cut insurance benefits....

Democrats Oppose GOP Health Coverage Bill

But Democrats and consumer groups who oppose the bill point out that in exchange for the lower costs, insurers would be freed from state requirements that they cover mammograms, childhood physicals and diabetes, as well as other health services.

http://www.forbes.com/home/feeds/ap/2006/05/09/ap2732571.html

[NoAmericanTaliban]

1. Another GOP legacy they can be proud of... culture of life my ass

Just read the article and was going to post it, but you beat me to it. This just sickens me. So much for the culture of life & compassionate conservatives. Maybe if they weren't so busy interfering in our lives such as taking away our choices, arresting people who smoke flowers, making sure cheerleaders are not provocative, etc., etc, etc. - they could focus on real issues such as this.

[progressoid]

2. USA! USA! USA!

Woohoo. C'mon people we can beat those Latvians to the bottom!

[middle]

3. Some would argue this demonstrates lack of parental abilities in the US

nothing more. Parents need to take care of themselves. That means NO DRINKING, NO DRUGS, NO SMOKING, and a better diet when pregnant.

We have been spoiled in this great country and our babies are paying for it.

BUt another factor at play here is the abortion rate. Those countries listed also practice a lot more "if it may not be a well child, abort it practices".

[Mandate My Ass]

5. Umm, no

It's not the victims' fault here. This country is now running for-profit prisons and hospitals. That means the poor will be overrepresented in prisons and underrepresented in hospitals, because that's what improves the bottom line for the benefit of the few.

And "those countries" where abortion is legal and nobody moralizes about it, have lower rates of abortion, teen pregnancies, and poverty.

[Bob3]

4. per the GOP the right to life begins at conception and ends at birth

N/T

[MannyGoldstein]

6. Worse than... Cuba!

We're worse than Cuba!

I wrote a short bit on this recently. If our infant mortality was as low as Singapore's, we'd save almost 18,000 babies a year.

And our life expectancy is almost the lowest in the first world.

And, gee, we spend about $6,000 per person for healthcare each year, while the rest of the first world spends only about $3,000. We spend twice as much, for worse outcomes.

Where the @&*$ is the money going?

Oh, that's right...



"medical entrepreneurs"