Birthrate for U.S. teens is lowest in history, By Sharon Jayson, April 9, 2012, USA Today: “Teen births are at their lowest level in almost 70 years, federal data report today. Birthrates for ages 15-19 in all racial and ethnic groups are lower than ever reported. ‘Young people are being more careful,’ says Sarah Brown, CEO of the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy. She attributes the declines to less sex and increased use of contraception. The report by the National Center for Health Statistics says the actual number of teen births in 2010 was the lowest since 1946. It credits ‘strong pregnancy prevention messages’ and says contraceptive use ‘may have contributed.’ The analysis comes at a time when contraception is a hot political debate, from a congressional investigation of whether federal money pays for abortions to concern among some church leaders over an Obama administration mandate that all health insurance cover birth control…”
Teen births hit new low as pregnancy prevention programs pay off, By Michael Muskal, April 10, 2012, Chicago Tribune: “Teen births have fallen to record lows in the United States, continuing an overall trend — partly due to programs aimed at preventing pregnancies among teenagers, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported on Tuesday. The U.S. teen birth rate declined 9% from 2009 to 2010, reaching 34.3 births per 1,000 women ages 15-19, the CDC reported. From 1991 through 2010, the rate dropped by 44%. Teen child-bearing has been generally on a long-term decline in the United States since the late 1950s, but the United States continues to have one of the highest such rates among industrialized countries. Teen mothers and their offspring have more health risks than older women and their offspring, adding about $10.9 billion to public health costs each year, the agency said…”
Teen pregnancy rate hits 40-year low, By Joel Provano, February 8, 2012, Atlanta Journal-Constitution: “The U.S. teen pregnancy rate has reached a 40-year low, a new study finds. The study, by the Guttmacher Institute, found that the pregnancy rate declined 42 percent from its peak in 1990, according to the study released Wednesday. The teen pregnancy rate in 2008 was 68 per 1,000 girls age 15-19, down from 117 per 1,000 in 1990. That means about 7 percent of girls in that age group became pregnant that year. In addition, the survey showed the birthrate declined 35 percent between 1991 and 2008, from 61.8 to 40.2 births per 1,000 teens…”
Teen pregnancy, abortion rates at record low, study says, By James B. Kelleher, February 8, 2012, Chicago Tribune: “Birth and abortion rates among U.S. teens fell to record lows in 2008 as increased use of contraceptives sent the overall teen pregnancy rate to its lowest level since at least 1972, a study showed on Wednesday. But disparities among racial and ethnic groups continued to persist, with black and Hispanic teens experiencing pregnancy and abortion rates two to four times higher than their white peers, the Guttmacher Institute, the nonprofit sexual health research group that conducted the analysis, said…”
U.S. teen pregnancy rate remains highest in developed world, By Shari Roan, January 19, 2012, Los Angeles Times: “Teen pregnancy rates in the United States have fallen in recent years, but the country still has a higher rate than any other developed country, according to data released Thursday from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Battles over how to best prevent teen pregnancy may be to blame for the continued high rate in the United States. Abstinence-only programs are favored in some areas while education and improved access to contraception are supported in others. The most recent controversy stemmed from the federal government’s refusal in December to allow emergency contraceptive pills to be sold over-the-counter to girls age 16 and younger…”
CDC: Many teen moms didn’t think it could happen, By Mike Stobbe (AP), January 19, 2012, San Francisco Chronicle: “A new government study suggests a lot of teenage girls are clueless about their chances of getting pregnant. In a survey of thousands of teenage mothers who had unintended pregnancies, about a third who didn’t use birth control said the reason was they didn’t believe they could pregnant. Why they thought that isn’t clear. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey didn’t ask teens to explain. But other researchers have talked to teen moms who believed they couldn’t get pregnant the first time they had sex, didn’t think they could get pregnant at that time of the month or thought they were sterile…”
Roanoke’s teen pregnancy rate plunges 32%, By Courtney Cutright, January 20, 2012, Roanoke Times: “Roanoke’s rate of teen pregnancies dropped nearly 32 percent from 2009 to 2010, moving the city out of the top 10 localities in Virginia with the highest rates. Roanoke still ranks 12th in the state. But the city’s teen pregnancy rate for 2010 is one of the lowest since 1996, according to Virginia Department of Health statistics posted online recently…”
