State-specific birth rates for teenagers--United States, 1990-1996

During the late 1980s, birth rates for teenagers in the United States increased sharply. Although rates have declined steadily since 1991 (1,2), age-, race-, ethnicity-, and state-specific rates have varied substantially. Despite recent declines, the U.S. birth rate for teenagers remains high compared with other industrialized countries. In 1996, an estimated 505,514 females aged <20 years gave birth; two thirds of births to teenagers are unintended (3). The adverse consequences of teenage childbearing include increased poverty for both mother and child. This report presents state-specific birth rates for females aged 15-19 years for 1991 and 1995 and compares race/ethnicity-specific birth rates for U.S. females aged <20 years for 1990-1996. These findings indicate that, during 1991-1995, birth rates among teenagers declined significantly in all but five states and the District of Columbia, and declines nationwide during 1991-1996 were especially large for teenagers aged 15-17 years and for black teenagers. Recent declines in abortions and abortion rates forteenagers, coupled with the trends described in this report for birth rates for teenagers, indicate that, since 1991, pregnancy rates for teenagers also have declined.