More babies born and abortions performed in 2021, data shows

More babies were born in North Carolina during the first full year of the pandemic than the five years before.

After a long decline, the state’s pregnancy rate went up during the pandemic, data shows. More than 120,000 babies were born in North Carolina in 2021. It was the first time since 2014 that the number increased.

That comes out to about 58 babies born per every 1,000 women in the state between ages 15 and 44. The rate is calculated like that to take into account population changes.

But as the birth rate went up so did the abortion rate.

There was a 9 percent increase in the number of abortions performed in the state in 2021 compared to 2020. Every age group saw an increase. Women in their 20s make up almost 60 percent of the people who had abortions.

Of all age groups, pregnant teens are the most likely to get an abortion.

While teens – those who are 15 to 19 – make up a small portion of pregnancies, what’s interesting is the share of people between those ages who are choosing to get abortions. The percentage of pregnant teens who choose to get abortions has been rising over the past ten years. In 2021 over a quarter of all teens terminated their pregnancies.

Of all age groups, pregnant teens are the most likely to get an abortion.

Teen births and pregnancies as a whole continue trending lower – down 2.5 percent between 2020 and 2021. Abortions in that age group jumped by about 10 percent.