Posted on 11/21/2006 1:23:56 PM PST by BenLurkin
ATLANTA - Out-of-wedlock births in the United States have climbed to an all-time high, accounting for nearly four in 10 babies born last year, government health officials said Tuesday.
While out-of-wedlock births have long been associated with teen mothers, the teen birth rate actually dropped last year to the lowest level on record. Instead, births among unwed mothers rose most dramatically among women in their 20s.
The overall rise reflects the burgeoning number of people who are putting off marriage or living together without getting married.
The increase in births to unwed mothers was seen in all racial groups, but rose most sharply among Hispanics. It was up among all age groups except youngsters ages 10 to 17.
"A lot of people think of teenagers and unmarried mothers synonymously, but they are not driving this," said Stephanie Ventura of the National Center for Health Statistics, a co-author of the report.
The government also reported that the rate of births by Caesarean delivery continued to climb in 2005 to a record high, despite efforts by public health authorities to bring down the number.
Many experts believe a large number of C-sections are medically unnecessary and done only for the convenience of the mother or her doctor.
The government report includes information from 99 percent of U.S. birth certificates filed last year. The information for 2005 is considered preliminary, but officials said it is not expected to change much.
About 4.1 million babies were born in the United States last year, up slightly from 2004. More than 1.5 million of those were to unmarried women; that is about 37 percent of the total. In 2004, about 36 percent of births were out of wedlock.
Out-of-wedlock births have been rising since the late 1990s.
But just because a mother is not married does not mean the father isn't around, Ventura noted. She noted 2002 statistics that showed that about 20 percent of all new mothers under 20 were unmarried but living with the father at the time of the birth. That same was true of about 13 percent of all new mothers ages 20 to 24.
According to census figures, the median age at first marriage was 27 for men and 25 for women last year, up from 23 and 20 in 1950. Meanwhile, the number of unmarried-couple households with children has been climbing, hitting more than 1.7 million last year, up from under 200,000 in 1970.
Other findings in the report:
The birth rate among teenagers declined 2 percent in 2005, continuing a trend from the early 1990s. The rate is now about 40 births per 1,000 females ages 15 to 19. That is the lowest level in the 65 years for which a consistent series of rates is available.
The U.S. teen birth rate is still the highest among industrialized countries.
Births to women in their early 20s rose slightly, to 102 births per 1,000 women ages 20 to 24. Births to women in their late 20s — the most productive group in terms of childbirth — was about that same from the previous year, at about 116 per 1,000 women ages 25 to 29.
The C-section rate rose to 30.2 percent of all births in 2005, an increase of 1 percentage point from the previous year. The rate has risen by nearly half since 1996.
"It is clear that the procedure is being overused," Tonya Jamois, president of the International Cesarean Awareness Network, said in a statement. ICAN is a California-based nonprofit organization focused on lowering C-section rates.
Geez, I wonder why we have these income disparities the Dims are talking about and claim they will be addressing as part of their 100 day agenda??
Thirty-seven per cent?! OMG! A sound and healthy society cannot support that statistic. But a society that lives by Hollywood standards can... as long as it never has to face up to hardship and difficult times, and as long as it never has to truly fend for itself in a very tough world.
I believe that would be "Welfare Senoritas!
This is the subsidization of Vicious Bastards. These are disasters for society.
"Yes, that would be racist.
Also pointless and irrelevant."
Pointless and irrelevant is in the eye of the beholder. But, if you think that it would be racist, perhaps you need a dictionary for Christmas. It's not even remotely racist to publish accurate statistics about anything.
Surely you are not so deluded as to believe society is going to accept hospitals allowing people to die in their parking lots or lobbies.
Given the fact that women make up over half the population THAT ain't going to happen.
"I do think ending automatic citizenship for babies (anchor babies) could be a solution."
NOW there is zero chance of any such solution since the GOP is being "punished". Funny how it looks as though rationality is being punished.
Those who like to see the stats broken down by race do so because they get a perverse kick out of showing that blacks and Mexicans have higher rates of unwed mothers.
Then they can infer without saying so that white females are somehow more virtuous than those"other women because they are more "responsible and moral" which is nonsense to anyone who has spent any time with the current crop of women of ANY ethnicity whose morals are dictated by MTV and the whole Sex and the City ethic.
Typical and planned. The father works. The mother gets welfare. This way they can afford the custom paint job on their low rider car and all the tequila dad wants, while Taxpayers pick up the bill for rent and food and medical on his family.
It's called "Welfare Scam".
Yes, elitist/progressive Norman Lear used the lyrics of that song as a sneer against traditional values.
By the end of it's run, when the American public was beginning to see the damage caused by liberal idiocy, I believe more people were laughing WITH All in the Family's Archie Bunker, than AT him.
Can you say Anchor babies....
Can you say Illegal Immigrants....
If you can you are better than the MSM....
Really bad news. It's gone up since the last figures I saw. The UK is at about 50% illegitimate.
This signals the end of civilization if not corrected. Children raised without fathers married to their mothers have a bad, bad track record.
Actually, not pointless and irrelevant, because the last figures I saw stated that among blacks, the figures for illegitimate births were around 75-80%. If that doesn't scare people, I don't know what will.
The black family has been almost destroyed by welfare. And a few other things. But when there are few intact families, things go to he!! in a handbasket very quickly.
If they're not bastards, then you are.
< }B^)
Welfare Queens don't believe in abortion.
Daniel Patrick Monyihan warned that this day would come. He pointed out that AFDC would lead to the disintegration of Families and more single Moms. We are subsidizing the worst behavior in our Society and creating future Criminals. How stupid and insane is this? More members of the permanent dependency class. Suckling at the Government Teat. When are we going to demand an end to the Gravy Train for bringing illegitmate Children into our Society??!
With removal of Millions of Fathers, the collapse of the Family we have the highest per Capita Criminal populace on the Planet. This is the fruits of Big Government and Feminism.
"Claim: A recent patient survey indicated that 70% of the women who gave birth at Parkland Hospital in Dallas, Texas in the first three months of 2006 were illegal immigrants.
Status: True. "
Solution: Unilaterally declare the hospital Mexican territory, a medical embassy. Transfer all illegal alien patients there.
Mrs VS
Why does anybody care if babies are born "out of wedlock" or "in wedlock"? The important thing is, are they born to someone who is prepared to raise them at her/their own expense, or are the taxpayers going to get hit with the bill? If I'm getting the bill for raising your kids, it doesn't make me any less pissed if you have a little piece of paper fromt he government saying you're "married". Irresponsible is irresponsible, and bringing children into the world when you clearly have no way to support them financially and/or personally, is irresponsible.
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