By Sean Moloughney, Editor05.01.23
Life expectancy in the U.S. declined for the second straight year in 2021, even as numbers in other rich countries rebounded following the impact of COVID-19 in 2020. There are other alarming trends that demonstrate not only the continued ripple effect of the pandemic, but also more systemic problems in health and healthcare in the U.S.
For example, maternal mortality—defined by the World Health Organization as deaths that take place during pregnancy or within 42 days following delivery—spiked 40% in 2021 compared to the previous year, according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The overall U.S. maternal mortality rate for 2021 was 32.9 deaths per 100,000 live births. The rate among Black Americans was much higher than other groups at 69.9 per 100,000 in 2021.
For comparison, WHO statistics indicate the maternal mortality rate in high-income nations overall was 12 per 100,000 live births in 2020, while in low-income countries it was 430 per 100,000.
While some experts have tied this trend to the pandemic, others have expressed concern of broader, more pervasive issues, with women’s health in a precarious place in the U.S.
In fact, the CDC’s latest compilation of data from state committees that review maternal deaths found that 84% of pregnancy-related deaths in the U.S. were preventable.
Meanwhile, a paper published in JAMA in March pointed to rising mortality rates among U.S. children and adolescents.
The paper’s lead author Steven Woolf, director emeritus and senior advisor at the VCU Center on Society and Health, told NPR: “This is the first time in my career that I’ve ever seen [an increase in pediatric mortality]—it’s always been declining in the United States for as long as I can remember. Now, it’s increasing at a magnitude that has not occurred at least for half a century.”
Across the lifespan, and across every demographic group, Americans die at younger ages than their counterparts in other wealthy nations.
Ensuring the health of mothers and children would seem a basic measure of a society’s development, and in wealthy counties, a reflection of its values.
For all the talk about healthy aging and focus on delivering great quality products to empower consumers on their journey to better health throughout the lifespan, I thought it was important to step back.
To put it bluntly, the state of health in America is pitiful. We can do better than this.
For example, maternal mortality—defined by the World Health Organization as deaths that take place during pregnancy or within 42 days following delivery—spiked 40% in 2021 compared to the previous year, according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The overall U.S. maternal mortality rate for 2021 was 32.9 deaths per 100,000 live births. The rate among Black Americans was much higher than other groups at 69.9 per 100,000 in 2021.
For comparison, WHO statistics indicate the maternal mortality rate in high-income nations overall was 12 per 100,000 live births in 2020, while in low-income countries it was 430 per 100,000.
While some experts have tied this trend to the pandemic, others have expressed concern of broader, more pervasive issues, with women’s health in a precarious place in the U.S.
In fact, the CDC’s latest compilation of data from state committees that review maternal deaths found that 84% of pregnancy-related deaths in the U.S. were preventable.
Meanwhile, a paper published in JAMA in March pointed to rising mortality rates among U.S. children and adolescents.
The paper’s lead author Steven Woolf, director emeritus and senior advisor at the VCU Center on Society and Health, told NPR: “This is the first time in my career that I’ve ever seen [an increase in pediatric mortality]—it’s always been declining in the United States for as long as I can remember. Now, it’s increasing at a magnitude that has not occurred at least for half a century.”
Across the lifespan, and across every demographic group, Americans die at younger ages than their counterparts in other wealthy nations.
Ensuring the health of mothers and children would seem a basic measure of a society’s development, and in wealthy counties, a reflection of its values.
For all the talk about healthy aging and focus on delivering great quality products to empower consumers on their journey to better health throughout the lifespan, I thought it was important to step back.
To put it bluntly, the state of health in America is pitiful. We can do better than this.
