Infant Mortality Rate Higher for Black Babies in Shelby County

In Shelby County, infant mortality rates are one of the highest in the nation, but racism explains the sky-high numbers in a new light. A lack of access to healthcare facilities, public transportation that does not actually work, and healthcare specifically designed for white anatomy creates a system where black babies are marginalized—and they pay with their lives. In 2016, the latest released data, 123 babies in Shelby county passed away in their first year of life. However, looking into the racial element of these deaths highlight how these deaths disproportionately effect the black community in Memphis. Every 12.3 per 1,000 children born died prior to the age of one if they were African American. In comparison, this statistic was 4.1 per 1,000 children born died prior to the age of one if they were white. This means black children are dying at triple the rate of white babies. The cause? Racism. In America, we have the medical professionals and resources to prevent this high rate of premature infant death. The issue lies in distribution.  Medical resources are unequally distributed or access to resources in unequal, leaving black people deprived of the necessary healthcare to live. The medical marginalization is based on race and, therefore, is racist in nature.

Shelby County in the context of the United States ranks as one of the worst counties for premature infant death. For an example of how dire the situation in Memphis is, in 2006, “185 babies died in Memphis, only six cities in the United States—all with much larger populations—had more infant deaths” (Charlier, 1). Typically, the United States has an infant mortality rate of 5.9 per 1,000 babies. Therefore, Memphis is a major outlier in data and the black community in Memphis an even greater one. In the past, Shelby County has tried to address this issue of infant mortality being so high. There policies included encouraging more consultations with women who have a history of carrying premature babies, prenatal care to marginalized communities, and social campaigns to stop smoking while pregnant. While these policies are a good start, they fail to truly address the racism underlying these deaths. Black communities are medically underserved, have poor access to unreliable transportation that could allow access to medical care, and have a higher rate of poverty in Shelby County making treatment harder to afford. Therefore, resources to access free, accessible, or subsidized healthcare should be at the forefront of policy. Social campaigns and education platforms are great, but actual, tangible improvements for black communities must also happen conterminously for true change to happen.

References:

https://www.commercialappeal.com/story/news/2017/11/16/shelby-countys-infant-mortality-rate-rose-2016-state-figures-show/870546001/

http://wreg.com/2017/11/17/infant-mortality-rates-on-the-raise-experts-concerned/