Final U.S. Birth Data Show a 1% Fertility Rate Decrease

Early calculations in April used different Census population data

The National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) has released a new report, Births in the United States, 2024 that gives the final numbers for births last year. This report follows an April report that shared provisional data. In the April report, the provisional general fertility rate—the number of births per 1,000 women aged 15 to 44—showed a 1% increase. However, the final data now indicates that this rate decreased by 1% from 2023 to 2024. In the new report, final birth data and updated population data from the U.S. Census were used to calculate the official fertility rate for 2024.

According to the new report, the total number of births in the United States increased by 1% from 2023, reaching 3,628,934. Birth rates decreased for women aged 15–34, stayed the same for women aged 35–39, and increased for women aged 40–44.

In addition, the report highlights that the rate of primary cesarean deliveries (C-sections) rose to nearly 23% in 2024, which is a small increase from the year before. The percentage of births covered by Medicaid dropped by 3% in 2024 and is down 6% since 2016, when the data first became available.