In 2020, the District of Columbia had the highest teenage pregnancy rate in the United States, followed by Mississippi and Arkansas. At that time, there were around 45 pregnancies among teens aged 15 to 19 per 1,000 in the District of Columbia. Teenage pregnancy Teenage pregnancy rates in the United States have decreased in recent years. In 2020, there were around 26.7 teenage pregnancies per 1,000 women aged 15 to 19 years. This number was almost 118 per 1,000 women in the year 1990. It is believed that the causes of this decrease include more teens abstaining from sex and increased use of birth control among those teens who are sexually active. Contraception use The use of contraception among sexually active teens is vital in reducing the rates of teen pregnancy. However, in 2021, only 52 percent of sexually active teens reported they used a condom during their last sexual intercourse. Furthermore, only 23 percent of sexually active female high school students were using the birth control bill to prevent pregnancy. Access to contraception and taboos surrounding teen sexual activity remain barriers to contraceptive use among teens in many areas of the United States.

In 2023, Mississippi had the highest rate of teen births in the United States with approximately 25 teen births per 1,000 women aged between 15 and 19 years. This statistic depicts the birth rates of teenagers in the United States aged 15 to 19 years in 2023, by state.

In 1990, there were around 173 teen pregnancies among teens aged 18 to 19 years per 1,000 women in the United States. This rate had decreased to about 50 per 1,000 by the year 2020. This statistic depicts the U.S. pregnancy rate among teenagers from 1973 to 2020, by age group.

This dataset includes teen birth rates for females by age group, race, and Hispanic origin in the United States since 1960.

Data availability varies by race and ethnicity groups. All birth data by race before 1980 are based on race of the child. Since 1980, birth data by race are based on race of the mother. For race, data are available for Black and White births since 1960, and for American Indians/Alaska Native and Asian/Pacific Islander births since 1980. Data on Hispanic origin are available since 1989. Teen birth rates for specific racial and ethnic categories are also available since 1989. From 2003 through 2015, the birth data by race were based on the “bridged” race categories (5). Starting in 2016, the race categories for reporting birth data changed; the new race and Hispanic origin categories are: Non-Hispanic, Single Race White; Non-Hispanic, Single Race Black; Non-Hispanic, Single Race American Indian/Alaska Native; Non-Hispanic, Single Race Asian; and, Non-Hispanic, Single Race Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (5,6). Birth data by the prior, “bridged” race (and Hispanic origin) categories are included through 2018 for comparison.

National data on births by Hispanic origin exclude data for Louisiana, New Hampshire, and Oklahoma in 1989; New Hampshire and Oklahoma in 1990; and New Hampshire in 1991 and 1992. Birth and fertility rates for the Central and South American population includes other and unknown Hispanic. Information on reporting Hispanic origin is detailed in the Technical Appendix for the 1999 public-use natality data file (see ftp://ftp.cdc.gov/pub/Health_Statistics/NCHS/Dataset_Documentation/DVS/natality/Nat1999doc.pdf).

This dataset assembles all final birth data for females aged 15–19, 15–17, and 18–19 for the United States and each of the 50 states.

Data are based on 100% of birth certificates filed in all 50 states. All the teen birth rates in this dashboard reflect the latest revisions to Census populations (i.e., the intercensal populations) and thus provide a consistent series of accurate rates for the past 25 years. The denominators of the teen birth rates for 1991–1999 have been revised to incorporate the results of the 2000 Census. The denominators of the teen birth rates for 2001–2009 have revised to incorporate the results of the 2010 Census.

This data set contains estimated teen birth rates for age group 15–19 (expressed per 1,000 females aged 15–19) by county and year.

DEFINITIONS

Estimated teen birth rate: Model-based estimates of teen birth rates for age group 15–19 (expressed per 1,000 females aged 15–19) for a specific county and year. Estimated county teen birth rates were obtained using the methods described elsewhere (1,2,3,4). These annual county-level teen birth estimates “borrow strength” across counties and years to generate accurate estimates where data are sparse due to small population size (1,2,3,4). The inferential method uses information—including the estimated teen birth rates from neighboring counties across years and the associated explanatory variables—to provide a stable estimate of the county teen birth rate. Median teen birth rate: The middle value of the estimated teen birth rates for the age group 15–19 for counties in a state. Bayesian credible intervals: A range of values within which there is a 95% probability that the actual teen birth rate will fall, based on the observed teen births data and the model.

NOTES

Data on the number of live births for women aged 15–19 years were extracted from the National Center for Health Statistics’ (NCHS) National Vital Statistics System birth data files for 2003–2015 (5).

Population estimates were extracted from the files containing intercensal and postcensal bridged-race population estimates provided by NCHS. For each year, the July population estimates were used, with the exception of the year of the decennial census, 2010, for which the April estimates were used.

Hierarchical Bayesian space–time models were used to generate hierarchical Bayesian estimates of county teen birth rates for each year during 2003–2015 (1,2,3,4).

The Bayesian analogue of the frequentist confidence interval is defined as the Bayesian credible interval. A 100*(1-α)% Bayesian credible interval for an unknown parameter vector θ and observed data vector y is a subset C of parameter space Ф such that 1-α≤P({C│y})=∫p{θ │y}dθ, where integration is performed over the set and is replaced by summation for discrete components of θ. The probability that θ lies in C given the observed data y is at least (1- α) (6).

County borders in Alaska changed, and new counties were formed and others were merged, during 2003–2015. These changes were reflected in the population files but not in the natality files. For this reason, two counties in Alaska were collapsed so that the birth and population counts were comparable. Additionally, Kalawao County, a remote island county in Hawaii, recorded no births, and census estimates indicated a denominator of 0 (i.e., no females between the ages of 15 and 19 years residing in the county from 2003 through 2015). For this reason, Kalawao County was removed from the analysis. Also , Bedford City, Virginia, was added to Bedford County in 2015 and no longer appears in the mortality file in 2015. For consistency, Bedford City was merged with Bedford County, Virginia, for the entire 2003–2015 period. Final analysis was conducted on 3,137 counties for each year from 2003 through 2015. County boundaries are consistent with the vintage 2005–2007 bridged-race population file geographies (7).

This map shows the teen pregnancy rate per 1,000 females age 15 to 17 by county. Counties are shaded based on quartile distribution. The lighter shaded counties have a lower percentage of teen pregnancy. The darker shaded counties have a higher percentage of teen pregnancy. New York State Community Health Indicator Reports (CHIRS) were developed in 2012, and are updated annually to consolidate and improve data linkages for the health indicators included in the County Health Assessment Indicators (CHAI) for all communities in New York. The CHIRS present data for more than 300 health indicators that are organized by 15 different health topics. Data if provided for all 62 New York State counties, 11 regions (including New York City), the State excluding New York City, and New York State. For more information, check out: http://www.health.ny.gov/statistics/chac/indicators/. The "About" tab contains additional details concerning this dataset.

Amazonas was the state with the highest teenage pregnancy rate in Venezuela in 2020. It was estimated that girls and women between 15 to 19 years old accounted for more than 17 percent of the total number of births registered in the state of Amazonas that year. At the national level, the female adolescent fertility rate stood at 13.5 percent.

This dataset assembles all final birth data for females aged 15–19, 15–17, and 18–19 for the United States and each of the 50 states. Data are based on 100% of birth certificates filed in all 50 states. All the teen birth rates in this dashboard reflect the latest revisions to Census populations (i.e., the intercensal populations) and thus provide a consistent series of accurate rates for the past 25 years. The denominators of the teen birth rates for 1991–1999 have been revised to incorporate the results of the 2000 Census. The denominators of the teen birth rates for 2001–2009 have revised to incorporate the results of the 2010 Census.

About 104.6 out of every 1,000 Hispanic women aged 15 to 19 gave birth in 1991. In comparison, the birth rate for Hispanic women in that age group was just 21.3 out of every 1,000 women in 2022. This statistic shows birth rates among teenagers and young adult women in the U.S. aged 15 to 19 in 1991 to 2022, by race/ethnicity.

Number of teen pregnancies and rates per 1,000 females, by pregnancy outcome (live births, induced abortions, or fetal loss), by age groups 15 to 17 years and 18 to 19 years, 1998 to 2000.

In 2023, the birth rate among teenagers and young adult women aged 15 to 19 stood at 13.1 births per every thousand women. This statistic shows the U.S. birth rate among teenagers and young adult women, aged 15-19 years, between 1991 and 2023. Teenage pregnancy and birth Teenage pregnancy and births are related to a number of negative outcomes. Babies born to teenage mothers are more likely to be premature and have a low birth weight, and teen mothers often experience gestational hypertension and anemia. Additionally, there are significant adverse effects on socioeconomic and educational outcomes for teenage parents. Teenage pregnancy is usually unplanned and due to the negative consequences mentioned above the ratio of legal abortions to live births in the United States is highest among teenagers. In 2022, there were 374 legal abortions per 1,000 live births among girls and young women aged 15 to 19 years, compared a ratio of 284 legal abortions per 1,000 live births among women aged 20 to 24 years. Contraceptive use among teens Contraceptive use is the best way for sexually active teenagers to avoid unwanted pregnancies, but use and accessibility remain problems in the United States. In 2021, only 23 percent of high school girls in the U.S. used the birth control pill to prevent pregnancy before their last sexual intercourse. Use of the birth control pill to prevent pregnancy is highest among white teenagers and lowest among Black teenagers, with only 11 percent of Black teenagers reporting use in 2021. Condom use is more common among high school students, but still only around half of sexually active students reported using a condom during their last sexual intercourse in 2021.

This map shows teen birth rates in the US. This is shown by county, state, and country from the 2022 County Health Rankings. The average is 19 births per 1,000 women aged 15-19.The data comes from the County Health Rankings 2022 layer. The County Health Rankings, a collaboration between the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute, measure the health of nearly all counties in the nation and rank them within states. "By ranking the health of nearly every county in the nation, County Health Rankings & Roadmaps (CHR&R) illustrates how where we live affects how well and how long we live. CHR&R also shows what each of us can do to create healthier places to live, learn, work, and play – for everyone."Counties are ranked within their state on both health outcomes and health factors. Counties with a lower (better) health outcomes ranking than health factors ranking may see the health of their county decline in the future, as factors today can result in outcomes later. Conversely, counties with a lower (better) factors ranking than outcomes ranking may see the health of their county improve in the future.

United States Birth Rate: Teenager: 15 to 17: White data was reported at 3.100 % in 2022. This records a decrease from the previous number of 3.200 % for 2021. United States Birth Rate: Teenager: 15 to 17: White data is updated yearly, averaging 19.550 % from Dec 1985 (Median) to 2022, with 38 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 30.500 % in 1991 and a record low of 3.100 % in 2022. United States Birth Rate: Teenager: 15 to 17: White data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United States – Table US.G008: Birth Rate.

In 1973, there were 580,530 teen pregnancies among women aged 18-19 years in the United States. This figure had decreased to 205,410 by 2020. This statistic illustrates the number of teen pregnancies in the United States from 1973 to 2020, by age.

United States Birth Rate: Teenager: 18 to 19: Native Hawaiian/Oth Pacific Islander data was reported at 40.700 % in 2022. This records a decrease from the previous number of 44.600 % for 2021. United States Birth Rate: Teenager: 18 to 19: Native Hawaiian/Oth Pacific Islander data is updated yearly, averaging 50.600 % from Dec 2016 (Median) to 2022, with 7 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 55.300 % in 2016 and a record low of 40.700 % in 2022. United States Birth Rate: Teenager: 18 to 19: Native Hawaiian/Oth Pacific Islander data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United States – Table US.G008: Birth Rate.

Although teen pregnancy has been on the decline in the United States, it remains among the highest within developed countries. Hispanics, who are more likely to be undocumented immigrants, lead this trend, yet the role of legal status has yet to be considered. To investigate this question, we examine teenage fertility responses to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which provides temporary legal status to undocumented youth. We find that DACA reduced the likelihood of having a teenage birth by 1.6 percentage points and eliminated roughly half of the gap in teenage childbearing between documented and undocumented women.

United States Birth Rate: Teenager: Black data was reported at 20.300 % in 2022. This records a decrease from the previous number of 21.800 % for 2021. United States Birth Rate: Teenager: Black data is updated yearly, averaging 62.350 % from Dec 1985 (Median) to 2022, with 38 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 114.800 % in 1991 and a record low of 20.300 % in 2022. United States Birth Rate: Teenager: Black data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United States – Table US.G008: Birth Rate.

This dataset includes live births, birth rates, and fertility rates by race of mother in the United States since 1960.

Data availability varies by race and ethnicity groups. All birth data by race before 1980 are based on race of the child. Since 1980, birth data by race are based on race of the mother. For race, data are available for Black and White births since 1960, and for American Indians/Alaska Native and Asian/Pacific Islander births since 1980. Data on Hispanic origin are available since 1989. Teen birth rates for specific racial and ethnic categories are also available since 1989. From 2003 through 2015, the birth data by race were based on the “bridged” race categories (5). Starting in 2016, the race categories for reporting birth data changed; the new race and Hispanic origin categories are: Non-Hispanic, Single Race White; Non-Hispanic, Single Race Black; Non-Hispanic, Single Race American Indian/Alaska Native; Non-Hispanic, Single Race Asian; and, Non-Hispanic, Single Race Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (5,6). Birth data by the prior, “bridged” race (and Hispanic origin) categories are included through 2018 for comparison.

SOURCES

NCHS, National Vital Statistics System, birth data (see https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/births.htm); public-use data files (see https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data_access/VitalStatsOnline.htm); and CDC WONDER (see http://wonder.cdc.gov/).

REFERENCES

1. National Office of Vital Statistics. Vital Statistics of the United States, 1950, Volume I. 1954. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/vsus/vsus_1950_1.pdf.

2. Hetzel AM. U.S. vital statistics system: major activities and developments, 1950-95. National Center for Health Statistics. 1997. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/misc/usvss.pdf.

3. National Center for Health Statistics. Vital Statistics of the United States, 1967, Volume I–Natality. 1969. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/vsus/nat67_1.pdf.

4. Martin JA, Hamilton BE, Osterman MJK, et al. Births: Final data for 2015. National vital statistics reports; vol 66 no 1. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2017. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr66/nvsr66_01.pdf.

5. Martin JA, Hamilton BE, Osterman MJK, Driscoll AK, Drake P. Births: Final data for 2016. National Vital Statistics Reports; vol 67 no 1. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2018. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/nvsr/nvsr67/nvsr67_01.pdf.

6. Martin JA, Hamilton BE, Osterman MJK, Driscoll AK, Births: Final data for 2018. National vital statistics reports; vol 68 no 13. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics. 2019. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr68/nvsr68_13.pdf.

This statistic depicts the U.S. pregnancy rate among teenagers in 2014, by ethnicity. In that year, there were around 38 teen pregnancies per 1,000 Hispanic women aged 15-19 years in the United States.