Spin Doctor

It's just a bleep on the screen amidst the political fervor and financial crisis, but I saw a national news anchor, Brian Williams, say several weeks ago on the 6 pm news that the US has the worst infant mortality rates of any industrialized nation. He said it was in spite of the US having the best access to the best health care.

Above is another story on MSNBC and shortly after we have Washington and CDC reporting that the rates are down.

Who do we believe? When will the "crisis" of the day be the state of maternal health care and the obvious (death rates) and the ignored (birth trauma from non-necessary medical interventions)?

By GARDINER HARRIS
Published: October 15, 2008

WASHINGTON — Infant deaths in the United States declined 2 percent in 2006, government researchers reported Wednesday, but the rate still remains well above that of most other industrialized countries and is one of many indicators suggesting that Americans pay more but get less from their health care system.

Infant mortality has long been considered one of the most important indicators of the health of a nation and the quality of its medical system. In 1960, the United States ranked 12th lowest in the world, but by 2004, the latest year for which comparisons were issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, that ranking had dropped to 29th lowest.

This international gap has widened even though the United States devotes a far greater share of its national wealth to health care than other countries. In 2006, Americans spent $6,714 per capita on health — more than twice the average of other industrialized countries.

Some blame cultural issues like obesity and drug use. Others say that the nation’s decentralized health care system is failing, and some researchers point to troubling trends in preterm births and Caesarean deliveries.

Many agree, however, that the data are a major national concern. More than 28,000 infants under the age of 1 die each year in the United States.

“Infant mortality and our comparison with the rest of the world continue to be an embarrassment to the United States,” said Grace-Marie Turner, president of the Galen Institute, a conservative research organization. “How can we get better outcomes?”
The data, collected by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, indicate that the nation’s infant mortality rate has been static for years despite enormous advances in the care given to preterm infants. Two-thirds of the infant deaths are in preterm babies.

Continued at Infant deaths in the US declined 2% in 2006