February 23, 2000
Mayor Williams Announces Decline In D.C. Infant Mortality Rate, Expanded Outreach In D.C. Healthy Families Insurance Program
Marks Significant Advances in the District's Healthcare System
Washington, D.C. - Mayor Anthony A. Williams today announced that the infant mortality rate for the District of Columbia has dropped from 13.1 in 1997 to an all-time low of 12.5 percent in 1998. Over a ten-year period, the District's infant mortality rate has fallen by 46 percent. In 1998, there were 96 infant deaths, reflecting the lowest infant mortality rate in the city's reporting history.
The lower figures in part represent a number of improvements in the Department of Health's efforts to reduce infant mortality. The positive trends in 1998 include:
- A decline in infant mortality in Wards 1, 3, 4, 6, and 8. Ward 6 showed the greatest improvement, with a 47 percent decline in the rate from 1997 to 1998.
- A 27 percent decline in the rate of deaths among infants less than 28 days old.
- A 5.6 percent increase in women who received adequate prenatal care.
A full breakdown of these numbers is included in the attached Briefing Paper on the Infant Mortality for the District of Columbia.
"This is a clear sign that we are making progress in the field of public health - particularly in child health - but infant mortality is still too high," said Mayor Williams. "We must and we are doing more to ensure that every new mother has the prenatal care and counseling she needs to give children the right start in life."
Mayor Williams also announced an expansion of the DC Healthy Families Program, an insurance program designed to ensure that eligible children and families receive free health insurance. The city has enrolled more than 13, 000 children and adults into DC Healthy Families. The District's enrollment rate for children is more than four times the national rate. At the press conference, Mayor Williams also released the second edition of "Use Your Power: A Map to Help Parents Use Medicaid and DC Healthy Families."
The Mayor was joined at the announcement by Councilmember Sandy Allen (Ward 8), Chair of the Council Committee on Human Services; and Councilmember Jim Graham (Ward 1), and Ivan C.A. Walks, M.D., Chief Health Officer and Director, Department of Health.
