Definition
Percentage of Utah women with live births who reported their most recent pregnancy was unintended.Numerator
Number of unintended births among Utah women.Denominator
Number of Utah women with a live birth.Data Interpretation Issues
A stratified random sampling approach is used in selecting women 2-4 months postpartum to participate in PRAMS. The data are weighted by the CDC to represent the birth population for that year, adjusted for sampling probabilities, nonresponse, and noncoverage. Each stratum must achieve a weighted response rate of 50% or it is not considered representative of that population.
See the PRAMS website at [https://www.cdc.gov/prams/php/methodology/index.html] for more detailed information on PRAMS and its methodology.Why Is This Important?
In the United States, unintended pregnancy is a major public health concern. Unintended pregnancy is a general term that includes pregnancies a woman reports were either mistimed or unwanted at the time of conception. Women with unintended pregnancies are less likely to seek early prenatal care or receive adequate prenatal care, they are more likely to smoke or drink during pregnancy, and are less likely to initiate or maintain breastfeeding.Other Objectives
Similar to HP2030 Objective FP-1: Reduce the proportion of unintended pregnancies among women aged 15-44. The 2013 baseline for this objective is 43.0% with a target of 36.5%. As the PRAMS survey is only administered to women with a recent live birth and is not used as a data source for this HP2030 Objective, PRAMS data cannot be used as a direct comparison of Utah's status on this objective.
Similar to HP2030 Objective FP-10: Increase the proportion of women at risk for unintended pregnancy who use effective birth control.How Are We Doing?
During the years 2020-2022, 18.9% of Utah women reported that their birth resulted from unintended pregnancy.How Do We Compare With the U.S.?
National PRAMS data in 2019 and 2020, the latest data available, show that 26.3% of women reported that their birth resulted from unintended pregnancy.What Is Being Done?
To reduce unplanned pregnancies, public health efforts may include:
'''Health Education:''' Increase knowledge of human reproduction, conception, and proper use of available contraceptive methods, and promote optimal spacing of pregnancies for healthy maternal and infant outcomes.
Women's health and maternal health information and education are available from the Utah Department of Health Human Services Maternal and Infant Health Program at [https://mihp.utah.gov/].
'''Access to family planning services:''' Family planning services are available in Utah from several sources: community health centers, Planned Parenthood Association of Utah clinics, Family Planning Elevated, and private providers. Utah law requires unmarried minors' parental consent to obtain contraception information and services from community health centers and clinics.
Self-administered hormonal contraceptives are available directly from a pharmacist. People 18 years and older can receive their birth control pills, patch or ring directly from a participating pharmacist. For more information, call your pharmacy or see [https://mihp.utah.gov/birthcontrol].
As of August 1, 2012, non-grandfathered plans must provide coverage for preventive women's health care, including contraception and counseling, without cost-sharing. Medicaid also provides family planning counseling and FDA-approved contraceptive methods without cost-sharing.Evidence-based Practices
Various studies have indicated that the use of long-acting reversible contraceptive (LARC) devices such as Implants and Intrauterine Devices (IUD) effectively lower the incidence of unplanned pregnancy in population and clinic settings.
