The infant mortality rate in Missouri for the 12 months ending with December 2000 was 7.2 per 1,000 live births, above the national rate of 6.9. There were 8,113 legal abortions performed in 1999, a rate of 7 abortions per 1,000 women.
The overall death rate of 997.1 per 100,000 population in 2000 was one of the highest in the US—a phenomenon attributable in part to the relatively high proportion of elderly Missourians in the population as a whole. Deaths from heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, accidents and adverse effects, and motor vehicle accidents were all above the national rate. The suicide rate of 12.6 per 100,000 population was also higher than the national average.
In 2000, the rate of death from HIV-related infection stood at 3.0 per 100,000 population, below the US rate of 5.3; a total of 9,654 AIDS cases had been reported in Missouri through 2001. In 2000, 27.2% of Missouri residents were smokers. The rate of death from lung disease stood at 81.9 per 100,000 inhabitants.
Missouri's 117 community hospitals had 800,648 admissions and 19,257 beds in 2001. There were 24,587 full-time registered nurses and 3,469 full-time licensed practical nurses in 2001 and 246 physicians per 100,000 population in 2000. The average expense of a community hospital for care was $1,619.80 per inpatient day in 2001.
Federal government grants to cover the Medicare and Medicaid services in 2001 totaled $3.1 billion; 866,815 enrollees received Medicare benefits that year. At least 10.2% of Missouri's adult population was uninsured in 2002.