Key takeaways from CDC's 2018 U.S. health report

Gabrielle Masson -

New data from the 2018 U.S. Health report published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics depict a grim outlook for the U.S., with exorbitant healthcare spending and increased rates of drug overdose deaths, vaping use, obesity and prescription drug use. However, a decline in teen birth rates, cigarette use and infant mortality rates provide silver linings.   

Drug overdose mortality

  • The death rate for drug overdoses increased 82 percent from 2007 to 2017, a jump from 11.9 to 21.7 deaths per 100,000 people.
  • Drug overdose death rates were higher among males than females for all ages except those 65 and over.

Vaping and tobacco use

  • 1.5 percent of students grades 9-12 used e-cigarettes in 2011, compared to 20.8 percent in 2018. 
  • In 2017, 14.1 percent of adults smoked cigarettes, a decline from 19.7 percent in 2007. 

Obesity

  • From 1999-2000 to 2015-16, obesity among women increased by 7.9 percent (41.2 percent of women are obese) and obesity among men increased by 10.7 percent (38.1 percent).

Prescription Drugs

  • Eleven percent of Americans in 2016 said they took five or more prescriptions within 30 days, nearly twice the rate in 1999-2000 (6.5 percent). 

Teen birth rates

  • The birth rate for teens ages 15-19 years fell by more than half from 2007 to 2017, from 41.5 to 18.8 births per 1,000 teens — a record low for the U.S. 

Infant Mortality

  • In 2017, the infant mortality rate was 14 percent less than 2007, at 5.79 deaths per 1,000 births.
  • However, rates vastly differ due to race/ethnicity. The infant mortality rate was 170 percent higher among infants of non-Hispanic black women than of non-Hispanic Asian or Pacific Islander women. 

Mortality

  • In 2017, the all-cause death rate among males and females was 6 percent lower than 2007. 
  • The leading causes of death were heart disease, cancer and unintentional injuries.  

Healthcare expenditures

  • Expenditures added up to nearly $3 trillion in 2017, a 3.8 percent increase from 2016.
  • Spending on hospital care, physician/clinical services and prescription drugs accounted for almost 75 percent of the total $2.96 billion personal healthcare expenditures.

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