Teen Birthrate Drops to New Low

MTV is going to have a harder time finding teem moms these days: The National Center for Health Statistics said Tuesday that the teen birthrate fell to its lowest point in seven decades, when records were first taken. The measure fell to 39.1 births per 1,000 teenagers ages 15 to 19 in 2009—a 6 percent drop from 2008 and the lowest rate since 1940. Less than 20 years ago, in 1991, the teen birthrate was 61.8 per 1,000 births. While the report does not cite any specific reasons for the decline, there have been nearly two decades of public-health initiatives to curb teen pregnancy—despite saturation in media of teenage parents. For women aged 40 to 44 years, births rose 4 percent between 2008 and 2009.