The Washington Post published an article pointing out the United States’ alarmingly high infant mortality rate compared to other similar high-income countries. The comparison shows rates in the U.S. are significantly higher than rates in Spain and Italy, and more than double the rates in Japan and Sweden.

The data shows the U.S. had lower rates among its peer countries in the 1960s, but for reasons unknown, the rates jumped in the 1980s and continued to grow.

In 2009, the U.S. averaged 6.7 deaths per 1,000 live births.

The U.S. infant mortality rates have declined by 20 percent over the last 20 years, but other countries are cutting their rates in half in the same amount of time.

Northeast Florida has seen similar declines in its infant mortality rates but their rates are still significantly higher than the overall U.S. rates.