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Surgeon general meeting aims to lower preterm birth 

One in eight babies - well over half a million a year - are born premature, a toll that's risen steadily for two decades with no sign of stopping.

The government this week begins an unprecedented push to figure out why, with special aim at preterm births that may be lowered: so-called late preemies, those born weeks, not months, early.

"The average woman should be thinking about this," says acting Surgeon General Steven Galson, who opened a two-day conference Monday on developing a national strategy to prevent premature birth. "We really need to redouble our efforts." . . .

Smoking and lack of prenatal care are the top preventable risks. To push health authorities to address those, the March of Dimes this fall will begin publicly grading states on their rates of preterm birth, pregnant women's access to smoking cessation programs, how many are uninsured and how many get a first-trimester ultrasound.

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