Despite the decreases, however, the rates for all of these factors far exceed the norms. The statistics concerning sexually transmitted diseases also show mixed results. An effort is needed to improve the immunization rate for children. Many local children are held back when they try to enroll in school because they lack immunizations that they should have received by age 2. These shots are covered by most insurance and are available at low cost or for free to parents without insurance.
Tuberculosis is also a concern.
The number of new cases in the City of St. Louis is usually less than 50 per year, however, in 1997, there was a 36 percent increase to 60 new cases. Heart disease and cancer are the leading causes of death. For African-American and white residents of the City, heart disease remains the leading cause of death. However, for African-Americans, the rate is 223.7 per 100,000 residents while for white residents the rate is only 153.4 per 100,000. Similarly, cancer is the second leading cause of death for City residents, but the rate for African-Americans is 197.7 per 100,000 while the rate for white residents is 134.3 per 100,000.