Preterm birth rates are worsening across the country, with 21 states seeing higher rates this year compared with last year. According to the data collected by March of Dimes, a nonprofit organization advocating for infant and mother health, preterm birth rates are particularly high in a number of Southern states, with many of them having a rate of 11.5 percent or higher. The national U.S. average preterm rate for 2024 was 10.4 percent. Preterm birth is when an infant is born prior to 37