Report: Texas Foster Care Girls More Likely To Get Pregnant

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — An advocacy group says teens in Texas foster care are five times more likely to become pregnant than other girls statewide.

Citing 2017 Texas Department of Family and Protective Services data, a 38-page report released Monday by Texans Care for Children says 332 foster care girls were pregnant last year, while 218 foster care youths were already parents.

Statistics from 2015 further show that, in a typical year, about one in 20 foster care girls ages 13 to 17 become pregnant — a rate of 5.7 percent, compared to 1.2 percent for girls statewide in that age group.

The report says foster care teens are more likely to get pregnant because they lack loving and supportive relationships, endure unstable family environments and have undergone trauma, sometimes including neglect or abuse.