University of Wisconsin–Madison ⋅ Medical College of Wisconsin
WMJ

Trends in Teenage Birth Rates in Wisconsin, 2011-2022: Continued Declines and Persistent Disparities

Josh Hoffner, DO, MPH; Ayanna Vasquez, MD, MS; Patrick Remington, MD, MPH

WMJ. 2024;123(6):460-463

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ABSTRACT

Background: Teenage pregnancy remains an important public health problem despite recent declines in teen births.

Methods: Teen (ages 15-19) birth rates (per 1000 females) in Wisconsin from 2011 through 2022 were compared by race/ethnicity and county using Wisconsin Interactive Statistics on Health data.

Results: Teen birth rates declined by 50% from 23.3 per 1000 teens in 2011-2013 to 11.5 per 1000 teens in 2020-2022, with the greatest decline among American Indian/Alaska Native teens (64%) and least among Black teens (40%), resulting in persistent 3-fold to 6-fold disparities between racial/ethnic groups. Teen birth rates by county had a 20-fold difference between Ozaukee (2.7 per 1000) and Menominee counties (54.5 per 1000).

Discussion: The remarkable decline in teen births suggests public health and health care interventions are working, but targeted effort is needed to reduce the growing disparities.

Author Affiliations: Preventive Medicine Residency Program, Department of Population Health Sciences, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, Wisconsin (Hoffner, Vasquez, Remington).
Corresponding Author: Josh Hoffner, DO, MPH, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Department of Population Health Sciences, 610 Walnut St, Madison, WI 53726; email Josh.hoffner@lmunet.edu; ORCID ID 0009-0006-9246-4428
Acknowledgments: The authors wish to thank the Wisconsin Department of Health Services for allowing public access to these data through WISH.
Funding/Support: Support for this work was provided to the Preventive Medicine Residency Program by the Wisconsin Partnership Program, Health Resources and Services Administration, William S. Middleton Memorial Veterans Hospital, and the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.
Financial Disclosures: None declared.
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