Jackie is StateImpact Oklahoma's health care reporter. In a partnership with Kaiser Health News and National Public Radio, Jackie covers health in Oklahoma and the health care industry for local and national audiences. She has many journalism awards to her name during her years of multi-media reporting in Colorado and was part of a team recognized by the Society of Professional Journalists with a Sigma Delta Chi award for excellence in breaking news reporting in 2013. She is a former young professional fellow of the Journalism and Women's Symposium, and a member of the Society of Professional Journalists, Reporters without Borders, and a lifetime member of Kappa Tau Alpha, awarded for her thesis on disability and technology in news reporting. She holds a bachelor's degree in English with an emphasis in creative writing from Colorado State University and a Master of Arts degree in journalism from the University of Colorado, Boulder. When she's not reporting, she enjoys spending time with her husband and three cats.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
A new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that black infants in Oklahoma are twice as likely to die before their first birthday than white or Hispanic babies, making Oklahoma one of the worst states for black infant mortality.
Behind the numbers: The death rate for black babies is a staggering 12.9 per 1,000 live births. White and Hispanic infant death rates in the state are much lower, at 6.8 and 6.0 respectively.
Oklahoma’s overall infant mortality rate has steadily increased since 2015 and has remained well above the national average of 5.8 per 1,000 live births. Massachusetts has the lowest rate at 4.2, which is less than half of Mississippi’s 9.08 — the highest in the nation.
