WHY WAIT?

 

• Higher high school drop-out rates are seen among teen mothers

• Unplanned pregnancies during the teen years have also been associated with social issues, including poverty, overall child well-being, and out-of-wedlock births

• Billions of dollars attributed to teen pregnancy related costs such as increased health care and foster care, increased incarceration rates of children of teen mothers, and loss of revenue due to teen mothers earning less money and having less education

• Increased maternal and newborn health risks associated with teen pregnancy

  • Complications during pregnancy and childbirth

  • Anemia, Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and other Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs), postpartum hemorrhage, and depression

  • Higher incidence of stillbirths and deaths in the first week of life born to mothers younger than 20 years old

  • Higher rates of preterm births, low birth weight, asphyxia and newborn complications related to alcohol and tobacco use associated with teen pregnancy