Improving Access to Health Services for Children and Pregnant Women (Brookings Dialogues on Public Policy)

American women and children, particularly poor ones, face major health risks. Infant mortality rates in the United States are far higher than in many other industrialized nations, and infant death rates, for blacks are twice those for whites. One serious impediment to reducing infant mortality and improving maternal and child health in the United States is that many children and pregnant women do not have access to basic health services. This book explores ways to ensure universal access to health services and examines the need to provide services that go beyond traditional medical care.