Participants in Sunday's GatorWalk 2008, an annual 5K walk-run benefiting March of Dimes, may have more drive in their strides now that Florida has been ranked among U.S. states with the highest rates of premature births.
Both Alachua County and Florida received an F on a report card released Wednesday by the March of Dimes.
The 2008 Premature Birth Report Card, the first of what will become an annual report, graded each state by comparing its pre-term birth rate - the rate of babies born before 37 weeks gestation - to the target rate of 7.6 percent. The report is based on information from 2005, the most recent year statistics were available.
With 13.8 percent of babies born pre-term, Florida came in at No. 41 among all states, plus Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. The figure is a 17 percent increase from 1995.
In Alachua County, 400 pre-term births were reported, which makes up 14.1 percent of all births in the county, according to the report.
Overall, the U.S. earned a D. The report estimated that one in eight American babies are born premature, which adds up to 1,400 babies every day.
The highest grade went to Vermont, which earned a B.
Allison Hux, GatorWalk director of missions, said not as many registrants have signed up this year, which is the fifth GatorWalk.
"I really hope this will motivate more people to come out and walk," Hux said of the report.
Last year, GatorWalk raised about $50,000 for March of Dimes, Hux said.
Cherie Sussman, youth development director at the North Central Florida Chapter of March of Dimes, said most of the money goes to prematurity research and education.
Registration costs $25 and begins at 1 p.m. Sunday.
Bettina Bush, pop singer and winner of American Idol Underground, an online competition for independent artists, will provide entertainment. Earlier in her career, she sang the jingle for McDonald's' "I'm Lovin' It" campaign.
Bush said she was motivated to get involved with March of Dimes after her best friend gave birth to triplets a trimester early. The only reason the babies survived was because of support from March of Dimes, she said.
Bush also started the Dime a Download campaign, which donates 10 cents to March of Dimes each time someone downloads her song "Cradle to the Grave" on iTunes.
