U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion

Infants

Goal: Improve the health and safety of infants.

A mother holds her newborn baby and gives the baby a bottle.

Nearly 4 million infants are born in the United States each year.1 Healthy People 2030 focuses on keeping infants safe and healthy through the first year of life.

Keeping infants healthy starts with making sure women get high-quality care during pregnancy and improving women’s health in general. After birth, strategies that focus on increasing breastfeeding rates and promoting vaccinations and developmental screenings are key to improving infants’ health. Interventions that encourage safe sleep practices and correct use of car seats can also help keep infants safe.

The infant mortality rate in the United States is higher than in other high-income countries,2 and there are major disparities by race/ethnicity. Addressing social determinants of health is critical for reducing these disparities.

Objective Status

  • 2 Target met or exceeded
  • 4 Improving
  • 6 Little or no detectable change
  • 3 Getting worse
  • 0 Baseline only
  • 2 Developmental
  • 0 Research

Learn more about objective types

Related Objectives

The following is a sample of objectives related to this topic. Some objectives may include population data.

Infants — General

Reduce the rate of infant deaths — MICH‑02
LHI label
Improving

Child and Adolescent Development

Increase the proportion of infants who are breastfed at 1 year — MICH‑16
Improving
Increase the proportion of infants who are breastfed exclusively through age 6 months — MICH‑15
Little or no detectable change

Foodborne Illness

Reduce infections caused by Listeria — FS‑03
Getting worse

Infectious Disease

Reduce cases of pertussis among infants — IID‑05
Target met or exceeded

Pregnancy and Childbirth

Reduce preterm births — MICH‑07
Getting worse

Sensory or Communication Disorders

Increase the proportion of newborns who get screened for hearing loss by age 1 month — HOSCD‑01
Little or no detectable change
Increase the proportion of infants who didn’t pass their hearing screening who get evaluated for hearing loss by age 3 months — HOSCD‑02
Little or no detectable change
Increase the proportion of infants with hearing loss who get intervention services by age 6 months — HOSCD‑03
Little or no detectable change

Sexually Transmitted Infections

Reduce the rate of mother-to-child HIV transmission — HIV‑06
Improving
Reduce congenital syphilis — STI‑04
Getting worse

Sleep

Increase the proportion of infants who are put to sleep on their backs — MICH‑14
Improving
Increase the proportion of infants who are put to sleep in a safe sleep environment — MICH‑D03
Developmental

Vaccination

Reduce the proportion of children who get no recommended vaccines by age 2 years — IID‑02
Target met or exceeded
Maintain the vaccination coverage level of 1 dose of the MMR vaccine in children by age 2 years — IID‑03
Little or no detectable change
Increase the coverage level of 4 doses of the DTaP vaccine in children by age 2 years — IID‑06
Little or no detectable change

Violence Prevention

Increase the number of states where a child fatality team reviews external causes of death in children — IVP‑D01
Developmental

Other topics you may be interested in

References

1.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2017). Births and Natality. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/births.htm

2.

Chen, A., Oster, E., & Williams, H. (2016). Why is Infant Mortality Higher in the United States than in Europe? American Economic Journal. Economic Policy, 8(2), 89-124. DOI: 10.1257/pol.20140224