06-17-2007, 07:47 PM
Quote:It isn't for lack of trying that the infants die. CDC - Infant mortality in the USThe point about teenage births is a valid one, but the real issue behind infant mortality is that while it is the poor that need healthcare the most in the US the vast majority of health spending is on the rich. Compare the US and UK - health spending in the US $4.5k per person, infant mortality 0.5%. Health spending in the UK $1.7k per person, infant mortality 0.3%. Teenage births are indeed higher in the US, but the UK has the highest rate in Europe. I don't know about cigarette and drug use but suspect they are similar. Accurate immigration figures aren't available for either country but I'm willing to bet immigration is higher in the UK. I haven't seen Sicko but I'm told it showed a British hospital with an empty waiting room - that's something I've never seen. The reality is that waiting rooms are full of migrant workers from Eastern Europe, because as non-residents they don't have family doctors and that's the only place they can get healthcare.
The US rate is declining consistently, but remains higher than European nations due to a number of factors. We have a higher rate of teen pregnancy, a higher rate of pregnant mothers who use drugs, including cigarettes, and our poor mothers do not practice prenatal care, even though it is free. We also suffer from a high rate of immigration, which continues to put pressure on all social systems, including schools, medical, and other government services. For example, a close friend of mine is an administrator in a large public city school where they are forced to try to accomodate non-english speaking children from 60 nations around the world. My guess is that Sweden is not so fortunate.
Oh, and at my daughter's London elementary school there were a total of 79 first languages other than English amongst the pupils : )