Explore national- and state-level data for hundreds of health, environmental and socioeconomic measures, including background information about each measure. Use features on this page to find measures; view subpopulations, trends and rankings; and download and share content.
Montana Value:
Births per 1,000 females ages 15-19
Montana Rank:
Explore Population Data:
Appears In:
Births per 1,000 females ages 15-19
US Value: 13.9
Top State(s): New Hampshire: 5.4
Bottom State(s): Arkansas: 26.5
Definition: Births per 1,000 females ages 15-19
Data Source and Years(s): CDC WONDER, Natality Public Use Files, 2021
Suggested Citation: America's Health Rankings analysis of CDC WONDER, Natality Public Use Files, United Health Foundation, AmericasHealthRankings.org, accessed 2024.
Substantial social, economic and health costs are associated with teen pregnancy and childrearing. Teen mothers are significantly more likely to drop out of high school and face unemployment. The children of teen mothers also have a higher risk of dropping out of school, being hospitalized, dying during infancy or childhood and becoming teen mothers themselves.
Some experts have predicted that the 2022 Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade will create more barriers for teens with an unintended pregnancy, particularly for high-risk teens, who have lower access to quality sexual and reproductive care and sexual education.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, teen pregnancy and childbirth cost taxpayers in the United States about $9.4 billion in 2010.
Teen births have declined steadily over the last several decades, but disparities persist. The rate of teen pregnancy is higher among:
Effective teen pregnancy prevention strategies include:
“ACOG Committee Opinion No. 710: Counseling Adolescents About Contraception.” Obstetrics & Gynecology 130, no. 2 (August 2017): e74–80. https://doi.org/10.1097/AOG.0000000000002234.
Beltz, Martha A., Vanessa H. Sacks, Kristin A. Moore, and Mary Terzian. “State Policy and Teen Childbearing: A Review of Research Studies.” Journal of Adolescent Health 56, no. 2 (February 1, 2015): 130–38. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2014.11.001.
Cederbaum, Julie A., Chung H. Jeong, Chaoyue Yuan, and Jungeun Olivia Lee. “Sex and Substance Use Behaviors among Children of Teen Mothers: A Systematic Review.” Journal of Adolescence 79 (February 1, 2020): 208–20. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.adolescence.2020.01.008.
Chin, Helen B., Theresa Ann Sipe, Randy Elder, Shawna L. Mercer, Sajal K. Chattopadhyay, Verughese Jacob, Holly R. Wethington, et al. “The Effectiveness of Group-Based Comprehensive Risk-Reduction and Abstinence Education Interventions to Prevent or Reduce the Risk of Adolescent Pregnancy, Human Immunodeficiency Virus, and Sexually Transmitted Infections: Two Systematic Reviews for the Guide to Community Preventive Services.” American Journal of Preventive Medicine 42, no. 3 (March 1, 2012): 272–94. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2011.11.006.
Hamilton, Brady E. “QuickStats: Birth Rates for Females Aged 15–19 Years, by Age Group — National Vital Statistics System, United States, 1991–2021.” MMWR. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report 72, no. 3 (January 20, 2023): 83. https://doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm7203a8.
Hamilton, Brady E., Lauren M. Rossen, and Amy M. Branum. “Teen Birth Rates for Urban and Rural Areas in the United States, 2007-2015.” NCHS Data Brief No. 264. Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics, November 2016. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27849147/.
Jutte, Douglas P., Noralou P. Roos, Marni D. Brownell, Gemma Briggs, Leonard MacWilliam, and Leslie L. Roos. “The Ripples of Adolescent Motherhood: Social, Educational, and Medical Outcomes for Children of Teen and Prior Teen Mothers.” Academic Pediatrics 10, no. 5 (September 1, 2010): 293–301. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acap.2010.06.008.
Osterman, Michelle, Brady Hamilton, Joyce Martin, Anne Driscoll, and Claudia Valenzuela. “Births: Final Data for 2020.” National Vital Statistics Reports 70, no. 17 (February 7, 2022). https://doi.org/10.15620/cdc:112078.
Peipert, Jeffrey F., Qiuhong Zhao, Laura Meints, Benjamin J. Peipert, Colleen A. Redding, and Jenifer E. Allsworth. “Adherence to Dual-Method Contraceptive Use.” Contraception 84, no. 3 (September 2011): 252–58. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.contraception.2011.01.023.
Romero, Lisa, Karen Pazol, Lee Warner, Shanna Cox, Charlan Kroelinger, Ghenet Besera, Anna Brittain, Taleria R. Fuller, Emilia Koumans, and Wanda Barfield. “Reduced Disparities in Birth Rates Among Teens Aged 15–19 Years — United States, 2006–2007 and 2013–2014.” MMWR. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report 65, no. 16 (April 29, 2016): 409–14. https://doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm6516a1.
America’s Health Rankings builds on the work of the United Health Foundation to draw attention to public health and better understand the health of various populations. Our platform provides relevant information that policymakers, public health officials, advocates and leaders can use to effect change in their communities.
We have developed detailed analyses on the health of key populations in the country, including women and children, seniors and those who have served in the U.S. Armed Forces, in addition to a deep dive into health disparities across the country.