U.S. Infant Mortality Reaches Record Low of 5.4 per 1,000 Births in 2025, CDC Provisional Data Show

The decline extends trends observed in final 2024 CDC figures, with reductions among both neonates under 28 days and older infants. Key contributors appear to include expanded maternal RSV vaccination and infant nirsevimab use beginning in late 2023, alongside continued safe-sleep messaging that correlates with lower SIDS rates. Absolute numbers dropped to approximately 19,350 deaths, down from 20,050 the prior year. Racial and geographic gaps remain pronounced: Black infants experienced more than twice the mortality rate of White, Hispanic, or Asian infants, while Mississippi recorded 9.65 deaths per 1,000 compared with New Hampshire’s 3.0. These patterns align with longstanding differences in prenatal care access, Medicaid expansion status, and concentrated poverty, factors also highlighted in a 2025 comparative analysis showing the U.S. rate nearly double that of Sweden, Japan, and Italy. Sustained progress will require linking vital statistics improvements to targeted interventions in high-burden states and populations. Next-year final data releases must confirm whether the provisional 2025 dip reflects durable gains or transient post-pandemic normalization. Expanded collection of social determinants data would help isolate which policy levers most effectively close remaining disparities versus peer high-income nations.