What does this measure?

The number of deaths among infants under age 1 per 1,000 live births.

Why is this important?

Infant mortality reflects the overall health status of a population and indirectly is a measure of the effectiveness and availability of quality health care, particularly prenatal care.

How is the Greater Capital Region performing?

The region’s rate in 2007 was 6.9, higher than the state rate of 5.5. The region’s rate has fluctuated since 2000 between 5.1 and 7.5, but ended where it began, while the state’s rate declined 13% during that time. In most years, the regional rate was higher than that of the state. Albany County has tended to have higher infant mortality rates than the rest of the region, though the numbers of infant deaths in the other counties are low enough that they are considered unstable. Both the regional and Albany County rates are above the Healthy People 2010 target of 4.5.

Notes about the data

Rates based upon small numbers are typically considered unstable, meaning it’s difficult to distinguish random fluctuation from true changes. The rates must therefore be interpreted with caution.