If the USA were a patient, according to the public health doctors who today unveil results equivalent to a nationwide annual physical exam, the findings would portend trouble.
After 15 years of significant improvements, progress has stalled. And two key areas in particular — obesity and infant mortality — are playing havoc with the country's vital signs.
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But while the effect of excess weight is largely still to come, the infant mortality rate is a trauma being felt now. More than 75 infants die each day across the USA, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The doctors behind the new study say the deaths are a sad reminder that the nation is not as healthy as it can be.
"Have we gone as far as we can go? Have we reached the limits of what human beings can achieve?" asks Reed Tuckson of United Health Foundation, a non-profit health advocacy group. "When we compare our infant mortality rate against other nations, it lets us know that we have much more distance to travel."
On average, seven of every 1,000 American babies die before age 1. The USA ranks 29th in the world in infant mortality.
http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2004-11-07-state-health_x.htmWhy is it that those "values voters" who are so concerned with protecting the life of the unborn, are never concerned with the increasing number of babies who die each year because mothers can no longer afford adequate health care?
Note the following stats for the red and blue states:The healthiest states and their percentage above the national norm: Minnesota, 25%; New Hampshire, 23.9%; Vermont, 22.8%; Hawaii, 17.7%; and Utah, 17.6%.
The least healthy and their percentage below the national norm: Arkansas, -12.1%; South Carolina, -12.9%; Tennessee, -13.1%; Mississippi, -20.2%; and Louisiana, -21.3%.
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