Infant Mortality Rate: Not So Much...

One of the things that makes our lives so complicated is the enormous amount of information that is now available to us, and the inability to sort through and analyze it all. Because of this information overload, we don't always know if what we are reading or hearing on the news is accurate or within the proper context. Unfortunately, people in various positions of power often use this to manipulate our thinking to suit their own purposes. This deception bothers me. A lot. Lying is something that I find particularly reprehensible. Just ask my kids.

So I wanted to address a "fact" that has been used to support the recent passage of a very expensive health care bill in Congress. Here it is: the United States has the highest Infant Mortality Rate of all first world nations. When I heard that, it didn't make sense. The United States, with the most advanced medical technology in the world, has more babies dying every year than countries like North Korea or Zimbabwe? So I decided to do a little research of my own.
This is what I found:

In fact, the United States does have a higher IMR than many other countries; 32 other countries in fact. But the reasons for this have nothing to do with poor health care.

Reporting Differences. Infant Mortality Rates are calculated based on children born alive who die within the first year. This does not include still births. Live births are defined in different countries by different standards. In the United States, babies born at any gestational age, of any size, showing any signs of life (breathing, heartbeat, voluntary movement or crying) are included in the numbers of live births. Some countries only count babies born after a certain gestational age or over a certain weight or displaying only certain signs of life, like breathing. All others are counted as still births, and are not reported in the Infant Mortality Rate, which drives down their numbers.

Better technology in the United States. Yes, I said better technology. One of the biggest factors in the survival of premature babies is the availability of a NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit). The United states has an average of one NICU for every 2,766 births, whereas the United Kingdom has one NICU for every 89,764 births. Japan is one of the only countries that even comes close to the United States, with one NICU for every 3,633 births.

In the United States, a baby born prematurely has a much better chance of being born alive and surviving, even if only for a short time, than any other country in the world. Therefore, more births in the United States will be included in the Infant Mortality numbers than in other country.

Also, the increase in fertility treatments in the United States in the past few years has increased the rate of multiple births (twins, triplets, etc.), which also increases the number of premature births. This is an additional factor that adds to the IMR in the United States.

So, yes, the Infant Mortality Rate in the United States is higher than many other first world countries, but it isn't because we have terrible health care or that people don't have access to it. Keep that in mind the next time you hear a politician, journalist or radio talk show host throwing out a "fact" to support their particular side. It might not be exactly what it seems.