According to the National Center for Health Statistics, Vital and Health Statistics Division data for 1995:
15-19 year olds | 20-24 year olds | |
---|---|---|
Pill | 13% | 33% |
Condom | 10.9% | 16.7% |
No Contraceptives | 70.2% | 36.6% |
Never had intercourse | 49.8% | 12.1% |
Of 9.7 million women using "coitis-dependent contraceptives" [i.e. barrier birth control methods such as the condom] in the 3 months prior to the interview, about 33% — over 3 million — used them inconsistently. An even higher percentage of teens using these methods reported inconsistent use — 38%. The highest percentage of any group of women reporting inconsistent use was in the 20-24 year old group — almost 42%.
9% of sexually active teens under age 16 are using the pill; 33.6% of these teens use condoms.
Nearly 30% of all women who had intercourse in the 3 months prior to the interview and used the pill as the only contraceptive method, reported missing a pill at least once during the cycle. [Table 45]