Amid increasing cases of premature births and consequential infant deaths, the U.S. observed Nov. 17th as the World Prematurity Day.

A premature or preterm birth typically happens when a child is born earlier than 37 weeks of pregnancy. In 2015, the U.S. saw its rate of preterm births increasing from 9.57 per cent to 9.63 per cent.

Experts noted that the U.S. saw an increase in premature births in spite of making notable medical advancements over the past few years. Wisconsin is one of seven states that reported jump in the condition since 2014.

Kate Richmond, NIICU medical director at Gundersen Health System, said, “There is a wide variety of reasons why babies are born premature. Some of those reasons are preventable, for example, not performing elective deliveries before a baby reaches their due date.”

Official data showed that the nation saw at least 2,000 premature births last year. Premature births were the biggest cause of infant deaths last year, which earned the nation a “C” grade.

With an aim to bring down the rate of premature births to 8.1 per cent by 2020 to be among nations with the lowest rates, the U.S. is spending billions of dollars annually.