Teen Birth Rate Increase

Bill Albert
202-478-8510

Jessica Sheets
202-478-8523

Statement by The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy

1/7/2009

(Washington, DC) -- The National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) today released final 2006 teen birth data which confirmed a 3% increase in the national teen birth rate, a figure first reported in December 2007 based on preliminary analyses. The increase between 2005 and 2006 is the first increase in the U.S. teen birth rate after 14 years of steady decline. In addition, NCHS reported that 26 states had a significant increase in their teen birth rate between 2005 and 2006 and only three states and the District of Columbia had significant decreases.

"It may be that one of the nation's most extraordinary success stories of the past two decades is coming to a close," said Sarah Brown, CEO of The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy. "Although teen pregnancy and birth rates have declined by about one-third since the early 1990s, many recent signs-including trends in teen sex and contraceptive use-seemed to have stalled or perhaps gone in the wrong direction. Let's hope this sobering news on teen births serves as a wake up call to policymakers, parents, and practitioners that all our efforts to convince young people to delay pregnancy and parenthood need to be more intense, more creative, and based more on what we know works."

National Campaign analysis of the NCHS data indicates:

• Roughly two-thirds of the teen birth rate increase between 2005 and 2006 can be attributed to teens age 18 to 19 and one-third to teens age 15 to 17.
• Increases in the teen birth rate between 2005 and 2006 were noted for nearly every racial/ethnic group. Approximately three-quarters of the overall increase in the teen birth rate during this time is due to increases in the teen birth rates of the major racial/ethnic groups, and about one-quarter is due to the fact that racial/ethnic groups with higher teen birth rates account for a growing share of the teen population.

Preliminary teen birth data for 2007 are expected to be released by NCHS in February 2009.

Please visit www.TheNationalCampaign.org for more information on the teen birth rate increase and other relevant materials and resources.

The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy is a private, non-profit, non-partisan organization that seeks to improve the lives and future prospects of children and families and, in particular, to help ensure that children are born into stable, two-parent families who are committed to and ready for the demanding task of raising the next generation. Our specific strategy is to prevent teen pregnancy and unplanned pregnancy, especially among single, young adults. We support a combination of responsible values and behavior by both men and women and responsible policies in both the public and private sectors.