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Press Summaries | |
MMWR articles are embargoed until 4 p.m. Eastern time on Thursday. |
MMWR Synopsis | |
Fact Sheet: | Facts about Family Planning |
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Click here for MMWR home page.![]() Synopsis December 3, 1999
Achievements in Public Health 1900–1999: Advances in Family Planning |
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PRESS CONTACT: John Santelli, M.D., M.P.H. CDC, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention & Health Promotion (770) 488–5200 |
Fertility rates in the United States decreased in the 19th and 20th centuries as couples chose to limit family size. Smaller family size and longer birth intervals have contributed to improved health of infants, children and women, and improved the social and economic roles for women. The most common methods of contraception have changed dramatically over the past 50 years, from the condom in 1955 to oral contraceptives in 1965, and female sterilization today. Condom use rose dramatically during the 1980s and 1990s, especially among teens. While unintended pregnancy remains high in the United States (49% of all pregnancies), publicly supported family planning services are estimated to prevent 1.3 million unintended pregnancies annually. Modern contraceptive methods have contributed to a 17% decline in the worldwide fertility rate in the past decade. |
Progress Toward Measles Elimination — Eastern Mediterranean Region, 1980–1998 Although eliminating polio is the highest immunization priority, countries in the Eastern Mediterranean Region have set a goal to eliminate measles by 2010. |
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PRESS CONTACT: Peter Strebel, M.D. CDC, National Immunization Program (404) 639–8764 |
In the Eastern Mediterranean Region, 23 countries are actively working to eliminate measles from the region. The measles elimination strategies are 1) achieving and maintaining routine measles vaccination coverage at >=95% among 1-year-old children, 2) conducting a one-time mass vaccination campaign (catch-up program), 3) conducting periodic national follow-up campaigns, and 4) strengthening measles surveillance and laboratory confirmation of cases. In 14 of the 23 countries, a total of 13 million children have been vaccinated. Before the introduction of vaccination in the early 1980s, approximately 200,000 measles cases were reported each year from those 14 countries (except Palestine). Once vaccination programs began, the reported number of measles cases decreased from 184,000 (in 1980) to 61,000 (in 1985). |
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Alcohol Involvement in Fatal Motor-Vehicle Crashes — United States, 1997–1998 Drinking and driving are still serious public health problems. |
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PRESS CONTACT: Ruth Shults, Ph.D., M.P.H. CDC, National Center for Injury Prevention & Control (770) 488–4652 |
In 1998, 15,935 people died and 305, 000 were injured in alcohol-related traffic crashes in the United States. During 1988-1998, the proportion of all traffic fatalities that were alcohol-related decreased from 50% to 38%, and the rate of alcohol-related traffic fatalities declined from 9.7 to 5.9 per 100,000 people. However, the percentage of alcohol-related deaths has remain constant at 38.4% in 1998 and 38.5% in 1997. The national health objective for 2000 for alcohol-related motor vehicle deaths is 5.5 per 100,000 persons. A fatal crash is considered alcohol-related by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) if either a driver or nonoccupant (e.g., pedestrian) had a blood alcohol concentration of >0.01% grams per deciliter in a police-reported traffic crash. December is "National Drunk and Drugged Driving Prevention Month." |
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Fact Sheets |
Facts about Family PlanningDecember 3, 1999
For more information on contraception and family planning visit this CDC website http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/drh/index.htm |
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