Oregon gets an “A” with lowest Premature Birth Rate in US, Nov. 6

Oregon earned an “A” on the 2015 March of Dimes Premature Birth Report Card and for the first time claims the lowest rate of preterm birth in the nation; a title Vermont has held for several years. In addition to Oregon having the lowest rate of preterm birth of all the states, Portland has the lowest rate of the 100 U.S. cities with the greatest number of births. Oregon’s preterm birth rate was 7.7 percent in 2014, according to the National Center for Health Statistics. The rate was better than the new March of Dimes 2020 goal of 8.1 percent. The report card also lists the state’s cities with the greatest number of births and their rates: Portland was 7.2 percent, Salem was 8.1 and Eugene was 8.0 percent. Portland’s rate of 7.2 percent earns the city top spot on the list of the 100 U.S. cities with the greatest number of births, followed by Oxnard, California, at 7.8 percent. Vancouver, Washington, often considered within the greater Portland metro area, while not one of the 100 cities with the greatest number of births, has a 7.7 percent rate of premature birth; which is lower than its state’s rate of 8.1 percent and the lowest rate of the five cities with the most births in Washington.