USA: More Black babies are dying than white infants

Although the disparity in the number of overall deaths reported between Black and white Americans has narrowed over the course of the last 75 years, researchers say that the same does not hold true for infants.

Black infants are dying at twice the rate of white infants – and it’s largely thanks to healthcare inequality.

“This is like a red alarm,” Harvard University associated professor Dr. Soroush Saghafian explained.

“Our findings are saying: Look, we could have saved five million Black Americans if they had the same things as white Americans have,” he told The Harvard Gazette.

The authors analysed mortality data collected by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, calculating life expectancy, mortality rates, and years of potential life lost for both white and Black Americas. 

Their analysis found that there was a 20.4 percent increase in life expectancy for Black Americans and a 13 percent rise for white Americans, although Black adults still have an 18 percent higher mortality rate.

The American healthcare system has long been under scrutiny for its astronomical costs and hurdles to patient care. A new study released Wednesday from the West Health Institute has found that the inability to pay for healthcare in the U.S. has reached a new high.

More than a third of Americans – or an estimated 91 million people – report that they could not access quality healthcare if they needed it, according to the latest West Health-Gallup Healthcare Affordability Index.

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Source: The Independent, 2 April 2025