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Ala. Teen Pregnancy Rate Drops To Historic Low

The Alabama Department of Public Health has announced the state's teen birth rate has reached a historic low.

Officials say the teen birth rate in 2011 fell to a low of 20.9 per 1,000 women ages 10 to 19. State health officials say the figure translates to about 6,700 births to teen mothers.

State health officials say babies born to teenage mothers account for about 11.3 percent of all births in the state. The 2011 rate is a 58 percent decline from the state's peak in teen births in 1973, and a 32 percent decrease since 2000.

State officials say programs targeting high-risk youth, new mothers, abstinence education and programs being run from local health departments, tribal groups and other organizations have likely contributed to the decline.

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.

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