Related Experiment Videos
The demand for health inputs and their impact on the black neonatal mortality rate in the U.S
Insights
Improving black infant health requires addressing high birth rates and healthcare access. Expanding family planning and abortion services, alongside neonatal intensive care, can significantly lower the black neonatal mortality rate.
Area of Science:
- Public Health
- Health Economics
- Sociology
Background:
- The black neonatal mortality rate is nearly double the white rate, attributed to high birth rates among adolescents and unmarried women, and inadequate medical care access.
- Household production theory provides a framework for analyzing input utilization and its impact on infant survival.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine the determinants of input utilization affecting black infant survival.
- To estimate the impact of these determinants on neonatal mortality rates in large U.S. counties in 1977.
Main Methods:
- Utilized household production theory to analyze factors influencing input use.
- Estimated the relationship between input utilization and black infant survival across U.S. counties in 1977.
Main Results:
- Increased availability of family planning clinics and abortion services correlates with lower neonatal mortality rates.
- Availability and utilization of neonatal intensive care are significant determinants of newborn survival.
- Early prenatal care initiation was not found to be a significant determinant of newborn survivability in this study.
Conclusions:
- Reducing unwanted births through family planning and abortion services may be the most cost-effective strategy for improving black infant health.
- Addressing low-weight and preterm births among black populations is crucial for reducing neonatal mortality.
Abstract:
Relatively high birth rates among black adolescents and unmarried women as well as inadequate access to medical care are considered primary reasons why the black neonatal mortality rate is almost double that of whites. Using household production theory, this paper examines the determinants of input utilization and estimates the impact of utilization on the survival of black infants across large counties in the U.S. in 1977. The results indicate that expanding the availability of family planning clinics increases the number of teenagers served resulting in a lower neonatal mortality rate. Accessibility to abortion services operates in a similar manner. Moreover, the use of neonatal intensive care, which is strongly related to its availability, is an important determinant of newborn survivability whereas the initiation of early prenatal care is not. Overall, the results suggest that lowering the incidence of low-weight and preterm births among blacks by helping women to avoid an unwanted birth, may be the most cost-effective way of improving black infant health.