Why Is This Important?

Tracking age-specific birth rate patterns shows not only trends in teen births but also trends among older mothers.

Definition

The number of live births to females in a specific age group per 1,000 females in the age group.

Data Sources

• Birth Certificate Database, Office of Vital Statistics and Registry, New Jersey Department of Health
  (https://www.nj.gov/health/vital/)
• National Vital Statistics Reports, National Center for Health Statistics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
  (https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/nvsr.htm)
• Population Estimates Program, U.S. Census Bureau
  (https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest.html)

How the Measure is Calculated

How Are We Doing?

In New Jersey, the highest birth rate is among mothers 30-34 years old. Birth rates among women 30 years old and over increased while birth rates among mothers under 30 years old decreased between 1990 and 2022. For each age group under 30, Hispanic mothers have the highest birth rate followed by Blacks and then Whites. For those 30-39 years old, Whites have the highest rate followed by Asians and then Hispanics.

How Do We Compare With the U.S.?

Birth rates among New Jersey mothers under 30 years old are substantially lower than in the nation as a whole. Rates among those aged 30 and over are higher in New Jersey than in the U.S. as a whole.

What Is Being Done?

The Division of Family Health Services in the New Jersey Department of Health administers programs to enhance the health, safety and well-being of families and communities in New Jersey.

More Resources

Visit the NJSHAD Birth Data Query to create your own tables, graphs, and maps of teen birth rates by race, ethnicity, and county for 1990 onward.

National Center for Health Statistics:

• Teen Births Fast Stats
• Birth/Natality Fast Stats
• Birth Data