Overview

• A Johns Hopkins research letter in JAMA Pediatrics reports hospital-based neonatal circumcision prevalence fell from 54.1% in 2012 to 49.3% in 2022.
• The analysis covered more than 1.5 million U.S. male neonatal hospitalizations using AHRQ’s Kids’ Inpatient Database, which reflects inpatient procedures only.
• Declines appeared in most groups, including white newborns (65.3% to 60.0%), while rates were largely stable for Black (64.9% to 66.1%) and Hispanic (21.2% to 21.0%) newborns; Asian/Pacific Islander and Native American rates also decreased.
• Newborns from the highest-income ZIP codes and those with private insurance had the highest circumcision prevalence yet saw the largest reductions (59.4% to 51.1% and 64.2% to 56.3%, respectively).
• Authors cite possible contributors without asserting causation, including parental distrust of medical advice, demographic shifts, and earlier Medicaid coverage cuts in 17 states, even as WHO, AAP, and CDC endorse health benefits.