Reducing Teen Pregnancy in the US

Teen birth rates in the United States have declined to the lowest rates seen in seven decades, yet they are still nine times higher than in most other developed countries and ethnic disparities continue to persist. In 2011, nearly 330,000 babies were born to women aged 15–19 years.

Teen pregnancy and childbearing bring substantial social and economic costs through immediate and long-term impacts on teen parents and their children and strains the public sector. Having a child during the teen years carries high costs—health, economic, and social—to the mother, father, child, and community. The children of teenage mothers are also more likely to have more health problems, give birth as a teenager themselves, and face unemployment as a young adult.

Prevention of teen pregnancy requires broad-based efforts including evidence-based sexual health education, support for parents in talking with their children about pregnancy prevention and other aspects of sexual and reproductive health, and ready access to effective and affordable contraception for teens who are sexually active. Parents, educators, public health and medical professionals, and community organizations all have a role to play in reducing teen pregnancy.