Teen Pregnancy Rises in Sullivan County

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has released their report for 2019, and it displays a troubling trend for New Hampshire’s Sullivan County.

The number of teen pregnancies per 1000 15-19 year old’s is rising. Sullivan County has an average of 19 pregnant teens per 1000, up from 17, which is higher than all but Coos County in the state (www.countyhealthrankings.org). New Hampshire’s state average has fallen with this report, as the last release had the average at 15, but it is now 11 per 1000.

The Eagle Times quotes local early child resources specialist Samantha Paradis Torres’ reasoning for the trend. ” It’s not always a problem of poverty. Sometimes it’s the lack of a parent with knowledge and experience to teach the adolescent about the reproductive cycle and how to prevent or reduce the risk of pregnancy.”