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The just released report - America's Children: Key National Indicators of Well-Being, 2015, is a collaboration between 23 different Federal agencies, all participating in the Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics, which was chartered in 1997 with a mission to collect and document enhanced data on children and youth in the United States, improve the publication and dissemination of information to interested community members along with the general public and capture more accurate and extensive data on children at the Federal, state and local levels.

This extensive report is prepared from the most reliable Federal statistics and research and represents large segments of the population, examining 41 key indicators that represent important aspects of the lives of children. It is designed to be easily understood by the general public. This is the 17th report in the series. The key indicators found in the report can be divided into seven domains: family and social environment, economic circumstances, health care, physical environment and safety, behavior, education, and health. America's Children: Key National Indicators of Well-Being, 2015 is an exhaustive but fascinating report that makes for interesting reading.

I have pulled out some of the updated statistics and interesting facts as it relates to pregnancy, birth and newborns.

• The United States had 73.6 million children in 2014 and this number is expected to increase to 76.3 million in 2030. While the number of children living in the United States has grown, the ratio of children to adults has decreased.

• The continued growth of racial and ethnic diversity will be more an more apparent in the population of children in the USA. In 2020, less than half of all children are projected to be White, non-Hispanic and by 2050, 39 percent are projected to be White, Non-Hispanic and 32 percent of the children will be Hispanic.

• In 2013, there were 44 births for every 1,000 unmarried women ages 15-44, down from 45 per 1,000 in 2012. The birth rate in 2013 was highest for women in the 25-29 age group (67 per 1,000), followed by the rate for women ages 20-24 (63 per 1,000). The percentage of births to unmarried women among all births decreased from 41.0 percent in 2009 to 40.6 percent in 2013.

• The adolescent birth rate was 12 per 1,000 adolescents ages 15-17 in 2013, which was a record low for the country.

• The percentage of infants born preterm declined to 11.4 percent in 2013; it was the seventh straight year the percentage declined. In 2013, as in earlier years, Black, non-Hispanic women were more likely to have a preterm birth (16.3 percent) than were White, non-Hispanic (10.2 percent) and Hispanic (11.3 percent) women.

• The percentage of infants born with low birthweight was 8.0 in 2013. Low birth weight is defined as less than 2,500 grams, or 5 lbs. 8 oz. Black, non-Hispanic women were the most likely to have a low birthweight infant in 2013 (13.1 percent, compared with 7.0 percent for White, non-Hispanic, 7.5 percent for American Indian or Alaska Native, 8.3 percent for Asian or Pacific Islander, and 7.1 percent for Hispanic mothers).

• The infant mortality rate of 6 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2012 was unchanged from 2011. The mortality rates of Black, non-Hispanic and American Indian or Alaska Native infants have been consistently higher than the rates of other racial and ethnic groups. The Black, non-Hispanic infant mortality rate in 2012 was 11.2 infant deaths per 1,000 live births and the American Indian or Alaska Native rate was 8.4 per 1,000 live births; both rates were higher than the rates among White, non-Hispanic (5.0 per 1,000 live births), Hispanic (5.1 per 1,000 live births), and Asian or Pacific Islander (4.1 per 1,000 live births) infants.

When you read these facts and look at the other fascinating information included in the report - what comes to mind for you? Do you see opportunities for providing services beyond what you already provide? Might there be a need for education, information and resources designed to serve another demographic than the current populations you serve? Could you help improve outcomes (prematurity, low birth weight, teen pregnancy) by adding classes, providing additional information or making your current classes accessible to a more diverse population? Let us know in the comments section after you have a chance to poke around the information available in the recently released report - America's Children: Key National Indicators of Well-Being, 2015. For more general information, including supplemental reports and an overall summary, check out the ChildStats.gov website.

Published: July 15, 2015

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