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What's Good

•Hospital costs here are among the lowest in our survey.

•Just 4 percent of pregnant women in Atlanta admit to smoking during pregnancy, the 6th lowest rate in our survey. Nationwide, 8 percent of pregnant women smoke.

•Relative to population, Atlanta has more specialty retailers of healthy/organic foods and vitamins than most places in our survey.

•16.6 percent of births statewide are attended by midwives, compared to a national average of 7.3 percent.

•Atlanta has 51 midwives for every 1,000 births, the 4th highest in our survey. The national average is 37 midwives for every 1,000 births.

•Expecting and new moms have plenty of parks: Atlanta's ratio of parks to residents is 1 : 1,439. The average in our survey is 1 : 3,790.

•There are 72 percent more advanced fertility clinics per capita than average here, the 4th highest ratio in our survey.

•There are 281 percent more fertility doctors per capita here than average-the highest ratio in our survey.

•Atlanta has 6.4 NICU facilities per 10,000 births, 5th highest in our survey. The average city in our survey has 3.4 NICU facilities per 10,000 live births.

•Atlanta has plenty of high-risk pediatricians, 135 percent more than average per capita and the 3rd highest in our survey.

•Atlanta has more OB-GYNs than average, the highest in our survey.

•Georgia stands out in a measure of legislation related to cord blood education, research and related issues.

•In a comparison of inspection schedules for day-care centers, Georgia requires more frequent visits than average.

Needs Improvement

•According to data from the CDC, maternal mortality in Georgia is especially high.

•Atlanta babies are 33 percent more likely than average to be born with low birth weight.

•Babies here are 16 percent more likely than average to be born prematurely.

•According to our survey of park departments, for every 10,000 residents, Atlanta has 15 miles of public trails and pathways for hiking and stroller use, the 9th lowest in our survey. The average city in our survey has 79 trail miles for every 10,000 residents.

•State laws do not require health insurance companies to provide or offer any fertility-related services.

•There are just 3.7 licensed day care centers for every 1,000 children under 4 years. The average city in our survey has 5.9.

•Atlanta's violent crime rate is 49 percent higher than average, the 8th highest in our survey, in fact.

•Atlanta has an 18 percent higher property crime rate than average, the 11th highest in our survey.

•According to the Urban Mobility Report from Texas A&M University, Atlanta has one of the worst commutes of any city in our survey. It takes 46 percent longer to drive the same route during rush hour than in free-flowing traffic. That puts a lot more pressure on parents rushing to day care at the end of the day.

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