Teen Births in the United States: Overview and Recent Trends

Adolescent childbearing is associated with significant social, health, and financial risks for teens, their families, and society more broadly. Data from the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), within the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), indicate that the teen birth rate has decreased steadily over time. However, the United States continues to have one of the highest rates of teen births among other industrialized countries. This report focuses on teen birth rates—and the marked decline in recent years. The teen birth rate is defined as the number of live births per 1,000 females aged 15 to 19 each year. The earliest NCHS estimate of the teen birth rate (in 1940) was 54.1, which later peaked in 1957 at 96.3. It then decreased in most years from the 1960s through the 1980s, with a low of 50.2 in 1986. The birth rate increased over the next few years, to 61.8 in 1991. From 1992 onward, the teen birth rate declined except in two years, 2006 and 2007. From 2007 to 2023, the rate declined by approximately 68%, to a historical low in 2023 of 13.1. The teen birth rate has decreased across all racial and ethnic groups in recent years; however, the rates declined more for certain groups than others. From 2016 to 2023, birth rates fell by 54% for non-Hispanic Asian teens, 41% for non-Hispanic White teens, 40% for non-Hispanic American Indian or Alaska Native teens, 35% for Hispanic teens, 34% for non-Hispanic Black teens, and 26% for non-Hispanic Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander teens. In 2023, the teen birth rates for non-Hispanic American Indian or Alaska Native teens (20.9 per 1,000 females aged 15 to 19), Hispanic teens (20.8), non-Hispanic Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander teens (21.2), and non-Hispanic Black teens (19.3) were each more than double the rate for non-Hispanic White teens (8.4), and more than 10 times the rate for non-Hispanic Asian teens (1.8). Teen birth rates have varied considerably by state and territory, which may be due to a variety of factors, such as population composition. (An analysis of these factors by state is beyond the scope of this report.) In 2023, the state with the lowest teen birth rate was New Hampshire (4.6); the state with the highest teen birth rate was Mississippi (24.9). Fifteen states had rates of less than 10 births per 1,000 teens aged 15 to 19 in 2023: New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Maine, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Minnesota, New York, Utah, California, Oregon, Washington, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin (ordered from lowest to highest). Seven states had teen birth rates of 20 births per 1,000 teens or higher: Mississippi, Arkansas, Louisiana, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Alabama (ordered from highest to lowest). The rates for the territories ranged from 11.6 in the U.S. Virgin Islands to 23.5 in Guam. Teen birth rates have declined in rural areas over time but continue to remain relatively higher than teen birth rates in urban areas. The number of second (and additional) births to teen parents has also declined over time, with an 80% total decline from a recent high of 8.1 in 2007 to a historical low of 1.8 in 2023. Research suggests that multiple factors have led to lower teen birth rates in the United States. From the 1990s through 2019, the risk of teen pregnancy decreased primarily because of improved contraceptive use, including an increase in the use of more effective contraceptive methods (e.g., long-acting and reversible methods) and an increase in the use of multiple methods of contraception. During this period, some of the risk of pregnancy among younger teens declined because of decreased sexual activity; however, general trends in adolescent sexual activity have remained relatively stable. Broad economic and social variables may also influence teen behaviors, such as expanded educational or labor opportunities. Teen pregnancy has high costs for teen parents, their children, and society more generally. Teenage mothers and fathers tend to have less education and are more likely to have lower incomes than their peers who are not parents. Moreover, lower levels of education reduce teen parents’ potential for economic self-sufficiency. Children of adolescent parents are also more likely to face certain adverse health and social outcomes, such as preterm birth and other child morbidities. This report accompanies CRS Report R45183, Adolescent Pregnancy: Federal Prevention Programs, which discusses federal support for programs that seek to prevent pregnancy among adolescents, and CRS In Focus IF10877, Federal Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Programs, which includes summary information about the programs.