Definition
Number of live births per 1,000 population.Numerator
Number of live births.Denominator
Number of persons in population.Why Is This Important?
Tracking birth rate patterns among Utah and U.S. women as a whole is critical to understanding population growth and change in this country and in Utah. Birth rates directly relate to a population's need for timely and appropriate preconception, prenatal, neonatal, and postpartum care.How Are We Doing?
In 2019, there were 46,832 live births to Utah residents, a rate of 14.6 per 1,000 Utahns. This is a small decrease from the 2018 birth rate of 14.9, and ultimately, the lowest birth rate in a decade.How Do We Compare With the U.S.?
Utah continued to report a higher birth rate than the U.S. with 14.6 live births per 1,000 total population in 2019. The provisional U.S. birth rate in 2019 was 11.4 per 1,000 population, a small decrease from the 2018 rate of 11.6.What Is Being Done?
Having an overall high birth rate is not a risk factor for poor health outcomes. However, elevated teen pregnancy rates are a concern as these pregnancies are considered to be at higher risk.
The U.S. provisional birth rate for teenagers in 2019 was 16.6 births per 1,000 females aged 15-19, down 5% from 2018 (17.4), reaching another record low for this age group. The rate has declined by 60% since 2007 (41.5), the most recent period of continued decline, and 73% since 1991, the most recent peak. The rate has declined an average of 8% annually from 2007 to 2018.
The Utah teen birth rate for those 15 through 19 years also decreased to a rate of 12.0 in 2019. A variety of educational and prevention activities are targeted to decrease teen birth rates.
