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QuickStats: Birth Rates Among Females Aged 15–19 Years, by Race/Ethnicity* — National Vital Statistics System, United States, 1991 and 2014

Please note: An erratum has been published for this article. To view the erratum, please click here.

The figure is a bar chart showing that from 1991 to 2014, the birth rate for females aged 15-19 years declined 61%, from 61.8 to 24.2 births per 1,000, the lowest rate ever recorded for the United States. Declines ranged from 60% for non-Hispanic white teens to 72% for Asian or Pacific Islander teens. Despite the declines among all groups, teen birth rates by race/ethnicity continued to reflect wide disparities. In 1991, rates ranged from 27.3 per 1,000 for Asian or Pacific Islanders to 118.2 for non-Hispanic blacks; in 2014, rates ranged from 7.7 for Asian or Pacific Islanders to 38.0 for Hispanics.

* For American Indian or Alaska Natives and Asian or Pacific Islanders, includes persons of Hispanic and non-Hispanic origin.

Data are for U.S. residents only.

From 1991 to 2014, the birth rate for females aged 15–19 years declined 61%, from 61.8 to 24.2 births per 1,000, the lowest rate ever recorded for the United States. Declines ranged from 60% for non-Hispanic white teens to 72% for Asian or Pacific Islander teens. Despite the declines among all groups, teen birth rates by race/ethnicity continued to reflect wide disparities. In 1991, rates ranged from 27.3 per 1,000 for Asian or Pacific Islanders to 118.2 for non-Hispanic blacks; in 2014, rates ranged from 7.7 for Asian or Pacific Islanders to 38.0 for Hispanics.

Source: Hamilton BE, Martin JA, Osterman MJ, et al. Births: final data for 2014. Natl Vital Stat Rep 2015;65(12). Available at http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr64/nvsr64_12.pdf.

Reported by: T.J. Mathews, MS, tmathews@cdc.gov; Brady E. Hamilton, PhD, bhamilton@cdc.gov.

Alternate Text: The figure above is a bar chart showing that from 1991 to 2014, the birth rate for females aged 15-19 years declined 61%, from 61.8 to 24.2 births per 1,000, the lowest rate ever recorded for the United States. Declines ranged from 60% for non-Hispanic white teens to 72% for Asian or Pacific Islander teens. Despite the declines among all groups, teen birth rates by race/ethnicity continued to reflect wide disparities. In 1991, rates ranged from 27.3 per 1,000 for Asian or Pacific Islanders to 118.2 for non-Hispanic blacks; in 2014, rates ranged from 7.7 for Asian or Pacific Islanders to 38.0 for Hispanics.



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