Social Policy | |
NCHS Report: Teen Birth Rates Down In 1990s |
Births to teenage women declined among all ethnic and racial groups from 1991 to 1996 -- but the trend was particularly evident among black teens. A new report from the National Center for Health Statistics tracks the decrease.
Today, the vast majority are single. Also in the 1950s, 27 percent of women turning 18 were sexually experienced, compared to the mid-1980s, when 56 percent were. Nearly 500,000 children were born to 15-to-19-year olds in 1996, and 11,000 more to girls 14 and under. Experts find it significant that the declines are not confined to certain areas, but have been occurring in every state. The District of Columbia has a teen birth rate higher than any state -- 105.5 births for every 1,000 females ages 15 to 19, down from 114.4 in 1991. New Hampshire has the lowest at 33.3. Conservative groups like Focus on the Family, based in Colorado, say abstinence education turned the tide. But groups like the Alan Guttmacher Institute say it is due to more frequent use of contraceptives. Sources: Stephanie J. Ventura, et al., "Teen Births in the United States: National and State Trends, 1990-96," May 1, 1998, National Center for Health Statistics, (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), Washington, D.C.; Tamar Lewin, "Birth Rates for Teen-Agers Declined Sharply in the 90's," New York Times, May 1, 1998. |