The pregnancy rate declined for all women under 30 years of age, but the sharpest drop was among teenagers, with the teenage pregnancy rate falling by 15 percent from 1991 when it reached a record high. Among the factors driving this downturn in teenage pregnancies are increases in condom use, the adoption of the effective injectable and implant contraceptives, and the leveling off of teenage sexual activity.
Pregnancy rates remain highest for women in their twenties.
A new report from the National Center for Health Statistics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tracks the effects of changes in sexual activity, marriage patterns, contraceptive use, attitudes and economic and educational opportunities on pregnancies, and pregnancy rates over the past two decades in the United States. Using complete counts of births from the birth registration system and estimates of abortions and fetal loss, the report examines patterns by age, race and Hispanic origin, and marital status. The 6 million-plus pregnancies in 1996 in the U.S. resulted in 3.9 million births, 1.3 million induced abortions, and almost a million fetal deaths. Pregnancy outcome differs markedly by marital status. The birth rate for married women is almost 10 times their abortion rate.