In 1995, about 5,000 of the 27,000 women who gave birth in the state were teenagers, Tso says. Preliminary figures from this year show that births to teen mothers still average 18 percent. Teen Pregnancy Coalition. Statistics give the impression that only minorities have high rates of teen pregnancy, she says. It's really about economics, not race.
Poor kids tend to have little hope for a better future.
Teen pregnancy is a complex problem, Lehrer says. There's no silver bullet to fix it. Solutions require partnerships between parents, families, schools, religious institutions and community organizations. As the 21st century nears, AFDC, the basic income support program for poor families, has undergone a radical change. The 1996 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act eliminated AFDC and converted it into a block grant that funds state programs.