US Births Rose Last Year, Still Less than Before Pandemic
2022-05-30
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1Births in the United States increased by one percent last year.
2However, the number of babies born in 2021 was still lower than before the coronavirus pandemic.
3In 2020, the U.S. had its largest one year drop in births in nearly 50 years.
4But a recent government report states there were still about 86,000 fewer births last year than in 2019.
5Dr. Denise Jamieson is head of gynecology and obstetrics at Emory University School of Medicine.
6She said, "We're still not returning to pre-pandemic levels."
7U.S. births had been decreasing for more than 10 years before COVID-19 hit, and "I would expect that we would continue to see small decreases," she added.
8Deliveries were lower in January 2021 but improved as the year went on, said Brady Hamilton.
9He is with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the lead writer of the new report.
10He noted that much of the increase was seen in older mothers.
11The report is based on an examination of almost all birth certificates issued last year.
12Almost 3.7 million births were reported last year.
13That is up from the nearly 3.6 million births recorded in 2020.
14Births among 13- to 25-year-olds were down in 2021.
15But births increased three percent among women in their early 30s and early 40s.
16The year also saw a five percent increase in babies born to women in their late 30s.
17The U.S. was once one of only a few developed countries with a birth rate that guaranteed each generation had enough children to replace itself.
18That rate was about 2.1 children for each woman.
19But that number has been decreasing in recent years.
20In 2020, it dropped to about 1.6, the lowest rate on record.
21It rose slightly last year to nearly 1.7.
22I'm Jonathan Evans.
1Births in the United States increased by one percent last year. However, the number of babies born in 2021 was still lower than before the coronavirus pandemic. 2In 2020, the U.S. had its largest one year drop in births in nearly 50 years. 3But a recent government report states there were still about 86,000 fewer births last year than in 2019. 4Dr. Denise Jamieson is head of gynecology and obstetrics at Emory University School of Medicine. She said, "We're still not returning to pre-pandemic levels." 5U.S. births had been decreasing for more than 10 years before COVID-19 hit, and "I would expect that we would continue to see small decreases," she added. 6Deliveries were lower in January 2021 but improved as the year went on, said Brady Hamilton. He is with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the lead writer of the new report. He noted that much of the increase was seen in older mothers. 7The report is based on an examination of almost all birth certificates issued last year. 8Almost 3.7 million births were reported last year. That is up from the nearly 3.6 million births recorded in 2020. 9Births among 13- to 25-year-olds were down in 2021. But births increased three percent among women in their early 30s and early 40s. The year also saw a five percent increase in babies born to women in their late 30s. 10The U.S. was once one of only a few developed countries with a birth rate that guaranteed each generation had enough children to replace itself. That rate was about 2.1 children for each woman. But that number has been decreasing in recent years. In 2020, it dropped to about 1.6, the lowest rate on record. It rose slightly last year to nearly 1.7. 11I'm Jonathan Evans. 12Mike Stobbe reported on this story for the Associated Press. Jonathan Evans adapted this story for Learning English. 13Words in This Story 14certificate - n. a written or printed statement that is proof of some fact