Teen Birth Rate Declines Dramatically In Tulsa County

A new report finds a dramatic drop in the teen birth rate in Tulsa County.

According to a new study by the Oklahoma State Department of Health, the state average is down but Tulsa County's decrease is much more significant than the state's drop.

In fact, the state health department says Tulsa County's decline was nearly double the decline for Oklahoma.

The county's birth rate for teens ages 15-17 declined by 12 percent since 2018. For teens ages 18 to 19 it dropped 22 percent in the last year.

"Tulsa has made teen pregnancy prevention a priority and the community's investments in strategies and programs that work are showing strong results." said Amber McConnell, Executive Director of the Tulsa Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy.

The health department says the major decrease is thanks to the leadership and program collaboration of over 20 organizations.

Even with these declines, Oklahoma still has one of the highest teen birth rates on a national level.

"Clearly, more work remains to be done in the Tulsa metro area and statewide if Oklahoma is to move out of the 'bottom of the barrel' for teen birth rate rankings," said McConnell. "It is imperative we continue to expand access to evidence-based health education and teen-friendly health centers, ensuring those programs are available to all young people in our community."

For free, downloadable copies of the State Teen Birth Rate Ranking fact sheets, along with other teen birth data, click here.

For information on health education and services provided in Tulsa by the Take Control Initiative, click here.