Teen Pregnancy
Teen pregnancy is closely linked to a host of problems for both the parents and the child. Virginia is addressing the full spectrum of social issues that contribute to teen pregnancy.
Why is This Important?
Teen pregnancy is a critical public health issue that affects the health, educational, social and economic future of the mother and child. Teen pregnancy is closely linked to numerous other important social issues as well: Welfare dependency, out-of-wedlock births, responsible fatherhood, and workforce development are all of particular concern.
Adolescents are less likely to seek out prenatal
care because they are afraid, embarrassed or
simply ignorant. This lack of prenatal care,
coupled with the mother's usually immature physical
development, result in higher rates of low-birth
weight babies than in other age groups. As the
offspring of adolescent mothers grow, they are
more apt than other children to have health and
cognitive problems and to be the victims of neglect
or abuse.
How is Virginia Doing?
The
rates for both teen pregnancies
and teen births have
declined in Virginia
and across the nation.
In 1995, the birth rate
for Virginia teens was
48.4 per 1,000 females
aged 15 to 19 years old. By
2005, this rate had decreased
to 34.4 births per 1,000 females
(15 to 19 years old), compared
to the national average of
40.5 births per 1,000 females
in the same age group. However,
in 2006, both the U.S. and
Virginia experienced a slight
uptick in birth rates to 41.9
and 35.2 births per 1,000
females. Based on this 2006
rate, Virginia had the 19th
lowest incidence of teen births
among the 50 states. Relative
to its peers, Virginia had
a lower rate per 1,000 females
than North Carolina (49.7)
or Tennessee (54.7), but a
higher rate than Maryland
(33.6). New Hampshire led
the nation with only 18.7
teen births.
According to the
Guttmacher Institute,
Virginia's teen pregnancy
rate was also among the
mid-range of states in
2000: the
19th lowest rate in the
nation at 72 pregnancies
per 1,000 females aged
15-19. The national average
in 2000 was 84 per 1,000
female teens. North
Carolina's rate was 95,
Tennessee's rate was
89, and Maryland's rate
was 91. The leading state
was North Dakota, with
a teen pregnancy rate
of just 42.
Within Virginia, teen pregnancy has generally been decreasing, with every region except the Southwest having a lower rate in 2007 than it did in 2000. Recent years, however, have shown some erosion in that progress.
2007 regional data from the Virginia Department of Health shows that the Eastern (68.7) and Hampton Roads (64.1) regions had the highest teen pregnancy rates per 1,000 females between the ages of 15 and 19, while the Northern (38.1) and Valley (45.5) regions had the lowest rates. In 2007 there were 13,766 pregnancies reported among teenagers in Virginia overall, or 51.5 per 1,000 females aged 15 to 19.
What Influences Teen Pregnancy?
Several factors influence teen pregnancy rates. Young women may be at higher risk for teen pregnancy if they:
- Use alcohol and/or other drugs, including tobacco products
- Drop out of school
- Lack a support group or have few friends
- Lack involvement in school, family, or community activities
- Perceive little or no opportunity for success
- Live in a community or attend a school where early childbearing is common and viewed as the norm rather than as a cause for concern
- Grow up under impoverished conditions
- Have been victims of sexual abuse or assault
- Have a mother who was aged 19 or younger when she first gave birth
- Begin dating early. Dating at age 12 is associated with a 91 percent chance of being sexually involved before age 19, and dating at age 13 is associated with a 56 percent probability of sexual involvement during adolescence.
Adolescents become sexually mature (and fertile) approximately four to five years before they reach emotional maturity. Adolescents today are growing up in a culture in which peers, TV and motion pictures, music, and magazines often transmit either covert or overt messages indicating that unmarried sexual relationships (specifically those involving teenagers) are common, accepted, and at times expected behaviors.
What is the State's Role?
Virginia works to deliver access to and availability of:
- Family-planning services
- Children's access to primary care providers
- Mental health/chemical dependency providers
- Adolescent well-care visits
- Pediatric mental health services
- Chemical dependency services
- Check-ups after
delivery.
Virginia's efforts are based on the core idea that preventing teen pregnancy should be approached not only as a reproductive health issue, but one that incorporates all of the social ramifications involved. If more children in Virginia were born to parents who are ready and able to care for them, we would see a significant reduction in a host of social problems, from school failure and crime to child abuse and neglect.
Data and Definitions
State-level Data: Centers
for Diseaase Control
and Prevention, National
Vital Statistics Reports: www.cdc.gov/nchs/datawh/vitalstats/VitalStatsbirths.htm
(updated annually in January)
Guttmacher Institute www.guttmacher.org/pubs/2006/09/12/USTPstats.pdf
Virginia Pregnancy Rate: Virginia Department
of Health (VDH), Center for Health Statistics
www.vdh.virginia.gov/HealthStats/index.asp (updated
annually in October)
www.vahealth.org/teenpregnancyprevention/
See the Data Sources and Updates Calendar for a detailed list of the data resources used for indicator measures on Virginia Performs.
