Preventing preterm birth saves babies’ lives and improves the future for families and communities.

Saves babies's lives

• Premature birth is the leading cause of infant death in the United States.
• Even premature infants who are only a few weeks from their due date have twice the risk of death than infants born at full-term.

Improves the future for families

• Premature birth results in permanent disability in as many as 1 in 4 babies.
• Premature babies are more likely to have behavior problems,
  health problems and difficulties in school.

Improves the future for the community

• The cost of a premature birth is much higher for insurers and other payers than the cost of a healthy, full-term birth.
• Premature birth contributes a significant share of the rising costs of health care to employers and to taxpayers. In fact, according to the Institute of Medicine, preterm birth costs $26 billion each year in the United States.
• Children who are born premature are more likely to need a higher level of resources from schools and the community.

For more information, download our Healthy Babies are Worth the Wait initiative brochure:
The Costs of Preterm Birth

 

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Photos courtesy of the March of Dimes unless otherwise noted.