Counties: Stem tide of teen pregnancies

Montgomery County (Map, News) - As much of the world celebrates the most famous teen pregnancy in history, Montgomery County officials are lamenting an increase in its teen birthrate and what it means for the overall health of their community.

Teen birthrates nationwide have been dropping since the early 1990s, but Montgomery County has seen the opposite. Between 2002 and 2006, the number rose to 612 from 516, accounting for 4.5 percent of all births in the county, according to a recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

County officials, worried about the first rise in the number of babies born to teen moms in 14 years, are hoping for state funding for a group of 20 agencies to tackle the rising teen birthrate in the county.

Funding for the county’s teen pregnancy prevention has decreased to $45,000 for 2008 from a high of $56,675 in 2004, according to Uma Ahluwalia, director of the county’s health department. Overall funding for teen parenting support in the county is $1.6 million.

County officials attribute the increase primarily to the county’s burgeoning Hispanic community. While rates for black and white teens have declined in the county, Hispanic births, especially from women ages 18 and 19, have increased dramatically.

Agencies like the school board, Adoptions Together and Planned Parenthood of Metro Washington will provide more Spanish-language sex education as well as teen-parent support teams to encourage young women to stay in school, according to Judy Covich, director of school health services for the county.

In neighboring Prince George’s County, the teen birthrate is nearly twice as high as in Montgomery County, but has remained relatively stable in recent years. CDC data reveal 1,161 teen births in 2005, compared with 1,149 in 2002.

Dr. Donald Shell, Prince George’s top public health official, is reorganizing women’s health services to meet the need.

“Our goal is to improve birth outcome,” Shell said. “That means healthier moms before they become pregnant, and for women who are not planning to become pregnant, help them with that.”

Shell concedes teens giving birth pose a unique challenge for the county: “Each year we get a new crop of teenagers,” he said. “Talk to me in a year and I’ll know if any of our new ideas worked.”

lfabel@dcexaminer.com