Teen Births Up The U.S. birth rate among teens 15 to 19 rose 3% in ’06, the first such increase since ’91. The finding surprised scholars and fueled a debate about whether abstinence-only sexual education efforts are working. Robert Rector, a Heritage Foundation senior research fellow, says that blaming abstinence-only programs is “stupid.” He notes that most young women who became pregnant were highly educated about contraceptives but wanted to have babies. (NY Times 12/8/07)