Mississippi Has The Most Teenage Moms

ATLANTA (AP) - A new federal report released today finds
Mississippi now has the nation's highest teen pregnancy rate,
displacing Texas and New Mexico for that lamentable title.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says
Mississippi's rate was more than 60 percent higher than the
national average in 2006. The teen pregnancy rate in Texas and New
Mexico was more than 50 percent higher.
The three states have large proportions of black and Hispanic
teenagers - groups that traditionally have higher birth rates,
experts noted.
The lowest teen birth rates continue to be in New England, where
three states have teen birth rates at just half the national
average.
It's not clear why Mississippi surged into first place. Ron
Cossman, a Mississippi State University researcher who focuses on
children's health statistics, says the state's one-year increase of
nearly 1,000 teen births could be a statistical blip.

(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)