The United States has recorded a historic low in infant mortality, with preliminary government data for 2025 showing a notable decrease. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), there were just under 5.4 infant deaths per 1,000 live births last year. This represents a statistically significant drop from approximately 5.5 deaths in 2024 and 5.6 in the previous two years, resulting in hundreds fewer infant deaths annually.
While the exact reasons behind this positive trend are not yet fully understood, experts remain optimistic. Dr. Michael Warren, chief medical and health officer for the March of Dimes, stated, “This is an encouraging data point, and we hope that this trend will continue.”
Infant mortality refers to the number of babies who die before reaching their first birthday. Because the number of births in the U.S. fluctuates each year, researchers use rates to compare infant mortality over time. The overall numbers have also been decreasing. According to provisional CDC data, U.S. infant deaths fell to about 19,350 last year, with the final tally expected to be slightly lower than the 20,050 in 2024 and 20,160 in 2023.
Over the decades, the U.S. rate has gradually declined — it was at 7.5 per 1,000 three decades ago — thanks to medical advancements and public health initiatives. However, the U.S. rate remains higher than that of other high-income countries, which experts attribute to factors such as poverty and inadequate prenatal care. A study published last year found that the U.S. infant mortality rate in 2022 — when the rate increased — was nearly twice as high as that seen in several other high-income democratic nations, including Italy, Japan, Spain, and Sweden.
That year marked the first statistically significant increase in the U.S. rate in about two decades. Experts linked the rise to a resurgence in RSV and flu infections. In response, U.S. health officials introduced two new measures in 2023 to reduce the impact on infants. One involved a lab-made antibody shot for infants to help their immune systems fight off viruses, while the other was administering an RSV vaccine to women between 32 weeks and 36 weeks of pregnancy. A March of Dimes expert noted that these efforts likely contributed to the improvement observed in 2024.
Additionally, a decline in sudden infant death syndrome could be connected to increased education around safe sleeping practices for infants, according to Warren’s statement.
The CDC released the 2025 provisional data in late May. On Tuesday, the agency published a more detailed analysis of 2024 infant mortality data, providing insights not yet available for 2025. Key findings from the report include:
- Death rates declined for both the youngest infants, those less than 28 days old, and older infants. These declines continued in 2025, according to the provisional data.
- In 2024, infant mortality continued to vary by race, sometimes significantly. Death rates for infants born to Black women were more than twice as high as those for infants of Hispanic, white, and Asian American women.
- Researchers observed a decrease in the mortality rate for infants born at full term, at 39 to 40 weeks. However, rates did not change significantly for other gestational age groups.
- Mississippi had the highest infant mortality rate, at 9.65 deaths per 1,000 births, while New Hampshire had the lowest, at just under 3 per 1,000.
- “These differences reflect a variety of factors related to access to care, community influences, and policies that improve health outcomes,” Warren said.
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