Infant mortality rate has biggest jump in decades as 14 states ban abortion as residents flee for care

Centers for Disease Control (CDC) released new data that shows that infant mortality rates are rising in the U.S. for the first time in two decades.

In a shocking health alert , the CDC's data shows that over 20,500 babies died before their first birthday in 2022, marking a three percent increase from the previous year, with the rate now at 5.6 deaths per 1,000 live births.

The new statistics show that the trend of declining infant mortality in the U.S., which began around 1995, has been disrupted - with experts listing restrictive abortion laws, Covid-19, and high healthcare costs, as part of the reason infant mortality is on the rise.

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Despite the increase, the U.S. still has generally lower rates than many other developed countries. As noted by the CDC's National Center for Health Statistics, last year's increase is the first statistically significant uptick since 2002.

Health experts are raising alarms over this development. Amanda Jean Stevenson, a demographer and assistant professor of sociology at the University of Colorado Boulder, told KCRA : "Infant health is one of the most important public health indicators that we have," she said.

"The fact that [infant mortality rates] are not continuing to decrease is a very big deal. Even flat infant mortality rates are not good. We need to see these numbers going down and fast because they are far too high."

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According to the CDC report, the leading causes of infant mortality in the U.S. between 2021 and 2022 remained largely unchanged. Nearly one in five deaths was due to congenital malformations.

A further 14 percent of deaths were attributed to disorders related to low birth weight or premature birth, followed by sudden infant death syndrome, accidental injuries, and complications from pregnancy, says CNN .

Infant fatality rates involving complications during the mother's pregnancy surged 9 percent from 2021 to 2022, jumping from about 30 infant deaths for every 100,000 live births to over 33 per 100,000 live births. Meanwhile, other top causes of infant death saw no significant increase.

Infant healthcare specialists strongly associate infant health with maternal health. The U.S. has grappled with high maternal death rates during pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum recovery for many years now.

Amanda Jean Stevenson, a demographer and assistant professor of sociology at the University of Colorado Boulder says that COVID-19 likely played a considerable part in the rise in infant mortality in 2022. She explains that infections in expectant mothers who were exposed to the virus during the major surges of 2021 could have impacted their infants born in 2022.