Infant Mortality

Infant mortality rate lower than state rate but disparities by neighborhood and race/ethnicity continue

 

Infant mortality is the death of an infant before their first birthday. The infant mortality rate is widely used as a measure of the overall health of a community, as it is a general indicator of unmet need and is associated with determinants of health. Addressing these determinants, including socioeconomic status, access to and quality of medical care, nutrition, and education is likely to reduce infant mortality. 

During 2017-2021, 4.0 per 1,000 infants born to King County residents died within a year of their birth. The King County rate was lower than the 2021 Washington state infant mortality rate of 4.3 infant deaths per 1,000 live births and well below the Healthy People 2030 target of 5.0 per 1,000 live births. 

Disparities persist by race/ethnicity, neighborhood and other factors. 

  • Race and ethnicity: Infants born to American Indian/Alaska Native people died at a rate (19.2 per 1,000) more than 4 times the rate for King County overall (4.0 per 1,000). Infants born to Black people died at a rate (8.1 per 1,000) 2 times the rate for King County overall. Infants born to Filipino (129.6 per 1,000) and Samoan (463.9 per 1,000) parents died at extremely high rates compared to the King County average. 

  • Region and city/neighborhood: Infant mortality in South King County (5.1 per 1,000) was significantly higher than the county average and about twice that of East (2.7 per 1,000) and North (2.5 per 1,000) King County. The rate was as high as 12.0 per 1,000 in Seattle – Downtown, Belltown, and First Hill – more than three times the county average and higher than most King County neighborhoods.  

  • Birthing person’s age: Infant mortality among birthing people age 18-24 (5.8 per 1,000) was higher than both the King County average and birthing people age 25-34 (3.7 per 1,000).  

  • Birthing person’s education: Infants born to people with a high school diploma/GED or less died at rates (6.1-8.5 per 1,000) higher than the King County average. Infant mortality among birthing people with a bachelor’s (2.5 per 1,000) or master’s (2.4 per 1,000) degree was lower than the county average. 

Notes & Sources

Source: Washington State Department of Health, Center for Health Statistics Linked Birth-Infant Death Statistical File (2011-2015)

For more information, see https://doh.wa.gov/data-and-statistical-reports/health-statistics/fetal-and-infant-death 

Numerator: Infants who die before their first birthday

Denominator: All live births during the time period

Information on infant deaths presented here is for infants who were residents of King County at the time of death. To learn more about birth data, read our data biography here.