skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Wednesday, September 18, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Medical copays reduce health care access in MS prisons; Israel planted explosives in pagers sold to Hezbollah according to official sources; Serving looks with books: Libraries fight 'fast fashion' by lending clothes; Menhaden decline threatens Virginia's ecosystem, fisheries.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

JD Vance calls for toning down political rhetoric, while calls for his resignation grow because of his own comments. The Secret Service again faces intense criticism, and a right to IVF is again voted down in the US Senate.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Rural voters weigh competing visions about agriculture's future ahead of the Presidential election, counties where economic growth has lagged in rural America are booming post-pandemic, and farmers get financial help to protect their land's natural habitat.

MN Teen Pregnancy, Birth Rates Fall to Historic Lows

play audio
Play

Friday, April 25, 2014   

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Some good news from a just-released report from Teenwise Minnesota, showing the teen pregnancy and birth rates in the state have fallen to historic lows.

Jill Farris, Teenwise’s director of Training and Education, says the rates were at their peaks in the early 1990s, but have been dropping steadily since.

"The pregnancy rate has declined about 58 percent in that time period and adolescent birth rates have gone down in that time period about 50 percent,” she says. “So, we're really encouraged by the progress that we've seen over the last couple of decades."

Farris attributes the declines to more young people using effective contraception and using it regularly, along with a growing number of teens who are waiting longer to become sexually active.

Farris says another positive from the report is that the chlamydia rate for teens fell between 2012 and 2013, the first such decline among that age group in 15 years.

"It is important to know, though, that overall the rate has gone up about 50 percent in the last decade,” she adds. “So, we're encouraged that it has gone down for one year, but at the same time we will be watching the numbers closely to see if this is kind of an aberration, or if it continues in a downward trajectory."

And while some may view the issue of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and teen pregnancy as one mainly for the Twin Cities, Farris notes young people are affected throughout the state.

"And in fact, the highest rates of pregnancy and birth that we see are actually not in the Metro area,” she points out. “They're all in rural Minnesota counties.

“Similarly, with chlamydia and gonorrhea rates, we certainly do see a lot of counties in Greater Minnesota that are affected and have really high rates among young people."

The entire 2014 Minnesota Adolescent Sexual Health report is available online at the Teenwise Minnesota website.





get more stories like this via email

more stories
Including the $236 million in federal funding for wildland fire management recently announced for 2025, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law has invested a total of $1 billion to the cause, according to the Department of the Interior. (Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

This month, the federal government announced funding for next year's wildfire management, totaling $236 million and experts hope threatened …


Social Issues

play sound

From gubernatorial candidate Mark Robinson to Superintendent of Public Instruction hopeful Michele Morrow, some Republicans running for office have …

Social Issues

play sound

California is home to more than 181,000 people who are unhoused, with 75,000 in Los Angeles alone, so the Los Angeles Food Policy Council will host a …


The California Department of Conservation is holding a public meeting online on Sept. 24, to update the public on its progress in plugging abandoned oil wells. (Alizada Studios/Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

Groups concerned about pollution and climate change are asking Gov. Gavin Newsom to sign a trio of bills dubbed the "make polluters pay" package…

Social Issues

play sound

This week, National Voter Registration Day was another timely reminder for Ohioans preparing for the 2024 general election. The latest reports from …

The American Heart Association said caregivers often experience personal and spiritual growth, discovering their own resilience, competence and capacity for sacrifice as they help a friend or loved one. (Justlight/Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

September is Self-Care Awareness Month and the American Heart Association in Missouri is urging caregivers to take some much-needed time for themselve…

Environment

play sound

In Virginia's waters, the decline of a small but critically important fish is causing growing concern among conservation groups and fishermen alike…

Social Issues

play sound

Colorado voters will decide whether to change the state's constitution to ensure families have school choice as a fundamental right. Kallie Leyba…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021