Children of wealthier, better-educated parents tend to be healthier, because disparities exist in the health of Maryland children in every socio-economic, educational and racial ethnic group, according to a groundbreaking new report.
“Based on two important indicators of health, infant mortality and children’s general health status, children in Maryland are not as healthy as they could be,” stated the report, released today by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Commission to Build a Healthier America, a national, independent, nonpartisan group that investigates ways to improve health.
“The levels of health for most Maryland children fall short of levels for children in the most advantaged subgroups in the state and across the country,” according to the report, the first of its kind to rank states on infant mortality and children’s health status based on key social factors.
General health status
Maryland had the second-smallest gap in the nation between the health of poor children and wealthier children.
The study found that children from poor families — those under the federal poverty level — were more than three times as likely to be less healthy than children in higher-income families — those whose incomes were more than four times the federal poverty level.
Hispanic children were found to be about three times as likely to be less healthy than non-Hispanic white children.
Infant mortality
Maryland was ranked No. 20 among states based on the size of the gap in infant mortality by the mother’s education.
This was determined by comparing the state rate of 7.4 deaths per 1,000 live births to the 5.3 deaths per 1,000 live births for infants born to the most educated mothers.
The rate for infants born to mothers with 13 to 15 years of schooling is nearly 30 percent higher than the rate associated with mothers with 16 or more years of schooling.
Among non-Hispanic black mothers, the infant mortality rate was more than twice the rate of infants born to non-Hispanic white or Hispanic mothers.
A cure
The positive news is that gaps can be closed now that they’re realized, said Dr. Paula Braveman, a member of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences.
Access to medical care is important, but it’s pivotal to realize that maintaining good health is more than just receiving good medical care, said Dr. Susan Egerter, co-director of research for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation commission.
“We need to change the conversation about health in this country,” Egerter said.
“Children need the right physical and social conditions to be healthy kids.”
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