CCRS Researchers Investigate COVID-19 & Fertility Rate

CCRS has released a research brief on fert​ility rate in Delaware, set in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Within the text, CCRS Assistant Policy Scientists Becky McColl and Erin Lynch explore Delaware's birth and fertility rates over time, compared to the rates for the United States on the whole. There was a reported reduction in births caused by the pandemic, adding to the decline in fertility rate over the last decade and a half.

The brief explores the intersections of Delaware's birth rate, fertility rate, economic state, public health, and the COVID-19 pandemic. A decision to have a child is based on employment status, housing status, food security level, and access to childcare. The text details how the current public health crisis has complicated all elements of the equation, including what resources exist to help individuals and families in these trying times.

Though the full extent of a decrease in births is often not known until months or years after an event, data from the National Vital Statistics System, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and the Household Pulse Survey project the impact of COVID-19 on birth rate for Delawareans. ​