Mothers' age, poverty, saturated neonatal care units... a new report points to the causes of rising infant mortality in France

Infant mortality in France is on the rise, a concerning trend that has seen the country slip from third place among EU nations to somewhere between 20th and 23rd. After reaching a historical low of 3.5% in 2011, deaths occurring before a child's first birthday have steadily increased, reaching 4.1% in 2024, which equates to 2,709 infant deaths.

A report by the Inspection General of Social Affairs (Igas), initially revealed by Le Canard enchaîné, investigated the causes behind this alarming increase. The ministry of Health received the report in January but had not published it until its existence was made public. The Igas report suggests that if France had achieved the European Union's average mortality rate of 3.3%, an estimated 529 deaths could have been prevented. Furthermore, aligning with the rates of Italy or Portugal (2.5%) could have saved 1,057 infant lives.

The report points to several contributing factors, including the age of mothers and the strain on neonatal intensive care units. The findings suggest a systemic issue within the French healthcare system's approach to neonatal care, leading to a reversal of decades of progress in reducing infant mortality.