AUTHOR: ELAINE SORENSEN
In the final blog in this series exploring data about Native Americans living in tribal areas with a child support program, we examine the birth rates and marital status of new mothers based on data from the 2015 American Community Survey. We find that Native American women between the ages of 15 and 50 who live in tribal areas with a child support program are considerably more likely to give birth than all women in this age range living in the U.S. We also find that the Native American women give birth at younger ages, and those who give birth are more likely to be unmarried than women in general in the U.S. Read part one of this series for how we define Native Americans and Tribal Areas with a Child Support Program.
Native American Women in Tribal Program Areas Were More Likely to Give Birth and at Younger Ages than All Women in US
About 8% of Native American women between the ages of 15 and 50 who lived in tribal areas with a child support program gave birth in 2015. This birth rate was about 50% higher than that for all women in the U.S. between the ages of 15 and 50. Teen Native American girls who lived in tribal areas with a child support program were nearly three times as likely to give birth when compared to teen girls in general (6% versus 2%). Even among women between the ages of 20 and 34, Native American women in tribal program areas were nearly 50% more likely to give birth than women in general in this age range (14% versus 9%). In contrast, birth rates among women aged 35 or older were much more similar between these Native American women and women in general.
Figure 1. Birth Rates for Native American Women (15-50 years old) in Tribal Areas with a Child Support Program and for All Women (15-50 years old) in the US
Source: 2011-2015 American Community Survey, 5-year estimates1
Native American Women in Tribal Program Areas Who Gave Birth Were More Likely to Not Be Married than American Women in General
In 2015, 68% of the Native American women (15-50 years old) in tribal areas with a child support program who gave birth were not married. This rate was nearly twice that for all women (15-50 years old) in the U.S.
Figure 2. Marital Status of New Mothers Among Native American Women (15-50 years old) in Tribal Areas with a Child Support Program and All Women (15-50 years old) in the US
Source: 2011-2015 American Community Survey, 5-year estimates
Conclusion
These findings suggest that tribal child support programs may want to develop strong messaging about the costs of parenting and child support for teens in their community since they appear to be experiencing relatively high birth rates. It also shows the importance of establishing paternity as the first step in the process of securing child support for most Native American children in tribal program areas.
1 For more information about the 2011-2015 American Community Survey, 5-year estimates, see: https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/technical-documentation/table-and-geography-changes/2015/5-year.html