Preventing Pregnancy Among Older Teens

The good news is that teenage pregnancy rates in 2009 reached record lows. The bad news is that U.S. teen pregnancy, birth and abortion rates are the highest in the developed world. These rates are calculated for women between the ages of 15 and 19, but a closer look shows that the rate for teens ages 18 to 19 is three times higher than for the younger teens. Older teenagers account for nearly 500,000 pregnancies and 300,000 births a year. This population is traditionally harder to reach, but in order to dramatically shift teen pregnancy rates, state legislatures will want to take advantage of prevention strategies, many of which are available through the Affordable Care Act (ACA).