These rates should be viewed with caution because in many states a substantial percentage of abortions are performed on persons who actually reside in another state. Rates are not available for states not reporting age of female receiving the abortion. Rates were calculated by Child Trends, using data on the number of abortions from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and population estimates from the U.S. Bureau of the Census. To calculate the Teen Abortion Rate, the number of reported abortions was divided by the population of females ages 15-19 in each state and then multiplied by 1,000. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Data reflect the mother s place of residence rather than the place where the birth occurred.
This measure of teenage childbearing focuses on the fertility of all females ages 15-19, regardless of marital status. We did not include births to females under age 15 in this analysis, since less than 3 percent of teen births occurred to females who were less than 15 years old. 46, No. 11, Supplement 2. Births are reported by state of residence of the mother, not by state of occurrence of the birth. 46, No. 11, Supplement.