Excerpt: “The actual number of U.S. births declined 14% from 1990 to 2023, the GFR declined 23%, and the TFR declined 22%. Due to declines in birth rates among females younger than age 30, holding their 1990 birth rates constant resulted in higher adjusted GFRs, TFRs, and number of births in 2023 than the actual rates and numbers. Due to increases in birth rates to women age 30 and older, holding their 1990 birth rates constant would have led to lower adjusted GFRs, TFRs, and number of births in 2023 than the actual rates and numbers. The magnitude of the decrease in birth rates among females younger than 30 was greater than the magnitude of the increase in rates among women 30 and older, resulting in declining overall fertility rates. These age-specific changes in birth rates resulted in changing maternal age distributions—in 1990, females younger than 30 accounted for 7 in 10 births (69.8%), while in 2023, they accounted for less than 1 in 2 (48.6%).”
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