Reduced Disparities in Birth Rates Among Teens Aged 15–19 Years — United States, 2006–2007 and 2013–2014

• Published in: MMWR. Morbidity and mortality weekly report 2016-04, Vol.65 (16), p.409-414
• Main Authors: Romero, Lisa, Pazol, Karen, Warner, Lee, Cox, Shanna, Kroelinger, Charlan, Besera, Ghenet, Brittain, Anna, Fuller, Taleria R., Koumans, Emilia, Barfield, Wanda
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescent; African Americans - statistics & numerical data; Birth Rate - ethnology; Birth Rate - trends; European Continental Ancestry Group - statistics & numerical data; Female; Health Status Disparities; Hispanic Americans - statistics & numerical data; Humans; Pregnancy; Pregnancy in Adolescence - ethnology; Pregnancy in Adolescence - statistics & numerical data; Residence Characteristics - statistics & numerical data; Social aspects; Teenage pregnancy; United States - epidemiology; Young Adult
• ISSN: 0149-2195; 1545-861X
• DOI: 10.15585/mmwr.mm6516a1

Teen childbearing can have negative health, economic, and social consequences for mothers and their children (1) and costs the United States approximately $9.4 billion annually (2). During 1991-2014, the birth rate among teens aged 15-19 years in the United States declined 61%, from 61.8 to 24.2 births per 1,000, the lowest rate ever recorded (3). Nonetheless, in 2014, the teen birth rate remained approximately twice as high for Hispanic and non-Hispanic black (black) teens compared with non-Hispanic white (white) teens (3), and geographic and socioeconomic disparities remain (3,4), irrespective of race/ethnicity. Social determinants associated with teen childbearing (e.g., low parental educational attainment and limited opportunities for education and employment) are more common in communities with higher proportions of racial and ethnic minorities (4), contributing to the challenge of further reducing disparities in teen births. To examine trends in births for teens aged 15-19 years by race/ethnicity and geography, CDC analyzed National Vital Statistics System (NVSS) data at the national (2006-2014), state (2006-2007 and 2013-2014), and county (2013-2014) levels. To describe socioeconomic indicators previously associated with teen births, CDC analyzed data from the American Community Survey (ACS) (2010-2014). Nationally, from 2006 to 2014, the teen birth rate declined 41% overall with the largest decline occurring among Hispanics (51%), followed by blacks (44%), and whites (35%). The birth rate ratio for Hispanic teens and black teens compared with white teens declined from 2.9 to 2.2 and from 2.3 to 2.0, respectively. From 2006-2007 to 2013-2014, significant declines in teen birth rates and birth rate ratios were noted nationally and in many states. At the county level, teen birth rates for 2013-2014 ranged from 3.1 to 119.0 per 1,000 females aged 15-19 years; ACS data indicated unemployment was higher, and education attainment and family income were lower in counties with higher teen birth rates. State and county data can be used to understand disparities in teen births and implement community-level interventions that address the social and structural conditions associated with high teen birth rates.