Revised birth and fertility rates for the 1990s and new rates for Hispanic populations, 2000 and 2001: United States.

OBJECTIVES

This report presents revised birth and fertility rates for 1991-99, as well as previously published revised rates for 2000-2001, based on populations consistent with the April 1, 2000, census. Revised rates for Hispanic subgroups (Mexican, Cuban, Puerto Rican, and other Hispanic) are also included in this report. Rates are presented by age, race, and Hispanic origin of mother; by age, race, Hispanic origin, and marital status of mother; by age and race of father; and by age of mother and by State. This report also presents new rates by age and Hispanic origin (subgroups) of mother for 2000 and 2001. The revised rates are compared with previously published rates that used July 1 population estimates based on the 1990 census.

METHODS

Populations for most rates were produced for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) under a collaborative arrangement with the U.S. Census Bureau. Populations for teenage subgroups 15-17 and 18-19 years by race and Hispanic subgroups were produced by NCHS. The populations reflect the results of the 2000 census. This census allowed people to report more than one race for themselves and their household members, and also separated the category for Asian or Pacific Islander persons into two groups (Asian and Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander). These changes reflected the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) 1997 revisions to the standards for the classification of Federal data on race and ethnicity. Because only one race is currently reported in birth certificate data, the 2000 census populations were "bridged" to the single race categories specified in OMB's 1977 guidelines for race and ethnic statistics in Federal reporting, which are still in use in the collection of vital statistics data.

RESULTS

Revised population-based birth and fertility rates from 1991 to 1999, based on the 2000 census, are with few exceptions lower than the rates previously published based on populations projected from the 1990 census. As expected, the differences in rates for American Indians, Hispanics, and Asian or Pacific Islanders were considerable. However, revised rates for most other population subgroups (i.e., non-Hispanic whites and blacks) differed little from those previously published. Regardless of the magnitude, the differences between the 2000-based and 1990-based rates progressively diverged through time so that previously published trends were generally retained but lower. Because of this shift, especially for Hispanic women, the differentials in fertility among population subgroups remain, but were somewhat reduced.