Www.plannedparenthood.org/files/PPFA/pregnancy_teens_2010-01.pdf. Evidence-Based Approaches - Healthy Teen Network. Strategies & Approaches - The Office of Adolescent Health. Efforts are currently under way to explore strategies to reduce teen childbearing and its associated negative outcomes for parents, children, and society.
Teen pregnancy is estimated to cost U.S. taxpayers between $11 and $28 billion a year.[1],[2] However, research suggests that implementing evidence-based teen pregnancy prevention programs, expanding access to Medicaid family planning services, and utilizing mass media campaigns to promote safe sex may reduce teen pregnancy and lighten the burden on taxpayers.[3] Additionally, the Affordable Care Act, passed in 2010, aims to improve access to recommended health care services for the entire population, including adolescents. The law expands health insurance coverage for teens, and offers new support for preventive services, innovative models of care, and clinical training, all of which have implications for teen pregnancy in the United States.[4] See below for specific strategies and approaches for: Adolescents Parents Healthcare Providers.
Facts on American Teens' Sexual and Reproductive Health. May 2014 •Fewer than 2% of adolescents have had sex by the time they reach their 12th birthday. But adolescence is a time of rapid change. Only 16% of teens have had sex by age 15, compared with one-third of those aged 16, nearly half (48%) of those aged 17, 61% of 18-year-olds and 71% of 19-year-olds.[1] There is little difference by gender in the timing of first sex.
•On average, young people have sex for the first time at about age 17, [2] but they do not marry until their mid-20s.[3] This means that young adults may be at increased risk for unintended pregnancy and STIs for nearly a decade or longer. •Teens are waiting longer to have sex than they did in the recent past. •In 2006–2010, the most common reason that sexually inexperienced teens gave for not having had sex was that it was “against religion or morals" (38% among females and 31% among males). •Teen sex is increasingly likely to be described as voluntary. . • Contraceptive use at first sex has increased over time. STIs 1. 2.
National & State Data | The National Campaign. FASTSTATS - Teen Births. Counting It Up | The National Campaign. Unique Needs of Children Born to Teen Parents - Fast Facts - Healthy Teen Network.