A society's infant mortality rate is an accepted indicator of that society's general health status. Even though in so...

Victoria on February 6, 2021

Hi @andreaskormusis,

Happy to help!

The question stem asks us to select the answer choice which most strongly supports the claim made about the implications of the decline.

What is the claim?

The decline in infant mortality rate does not necessarily indicate that babies in the U.S. are, on average, healthier at birth now than they were in the past.

Answer choice (A) is incorrect because it does not address the claim. We are looking at the health of American babies on average. Therefore, it does not matter that certain areas have unhealthier babies; in fact, this is directly conceded in the stimulus: "...in some localities in the U.S. the rate is higher than in many developing countries..."

Answer choice (C) is correct because it supports the claim that American babies are not, on average, healthier at birth now than they were in the past.

The U.S. has developed technology to save premature and low-birth-weight babies. This would reduce the infant mortality rate.

However, this does not mean that the babies lived because they were healthier; most still require extended hospital stays.

Therefore, this supports the claim that, despite the decline in infant mortality rate, American babies' health has not increased.

Hope this helps! Please let us know if you have any further questions.