What states have highest teen pregnancy birth rates? Kentucky on US News & World Report list
Teen birth rates may be declining in the U.S., but not all states are created equal and there are still some pretty big gaps around the country.
Teenage birth rates have continued to decline over the last few decades, and 2022's statistics are no different, as U.S. World & News Report and the Center for Disease Control showed April 4 with a drop of 2% year-over-year from 2021.
The teen birth rate has fallen to a new low each year since 2009, according to the release. The CDC says less sexual activity among teenagers and more consistent use of birth control among sexually active teens are potentially the reason teen pregnancy has declined by 67% since 2007 and 78% since 1991.
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According to the report, teen birth rate declined in 13 states overall in 2022, as rates ranged from a low of 4.6 births per 1,000 to a high of 26.4 per 1,000. Drops were as low as 3% in Florida to as high as 12% in Oklahoma.
However, 37 states and the District of Columbia remained virtually unchanged for the year.
Highest teen birth rates in US by state
Mississippi – 26.4
Arkansas – 24.6
Louisiana – 23.7
Kentucky – 21.8
Oklahoma – 21.2
Tennessee – 21
Alabama – 20.9
Texas – 20.4
West Virginia – 19.8
New Mexico – 19.7
Kentucky's healthiest communities by county
On a scale of 100, each Kentucky county was graded for a variety of categories to see which counties were the healthiest for the topic. The best and worst rated counties are listed below with their rating.
Kentucky Population Health
Best: Oldham County, 70
Worst: Lee County, less than 5
Kentucky Equity
Best: Lyon County, 86
Worst: Jefferson County, 30
Kentucky Education
Best: Oldham County, 77
Worst: Lee County, 13
Kentucky Economy
Kentucky Housing
Best: Union County, 77
Worst: Wolfe County, 10
Kentucky Food & Nutrition
Best: Harrison County, 77
Worst: Bell County, 25
Kentucky Environment
Best: McCreary County, 84
Worst: Floyd County, 31
Kentucky Public Safety
Best: Livingston County, 79
Worst: Jefferson County, 30
Kentucky Community Vitality
Best: Oldham County, 73
Worst: Christian County, 14
Kentucky Infrastructure
Best: Fayette County, 93
Worst: Lee County, less than 5
Chris Sims is a digital content producer at Midwest Connect Gannett. Follow him on Twitter: @ChrisFSims.
This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Report: Kentucky ranks 4th in teenage pregnancy birth rate in the U.S.