Biggest Increase in the Marriage Rate During 2020 Occurred in… Montana?

May 16, 2022

There were many social and health markers that were significantly disrupted in 2020 with the arrival of the pandemic.  Increases in mortality and declines in people seeking medical care during 2020 are well-documented, as is the sharp decline in fertility.   Employment levels and other economic indicators were greatly impacted, as was the workplace itself.  Education at all levels was faced with unprecedented challenges in 2020. 

Another social marker greatly impacted by the pandemic was marriage in the United States.  The number of marriages in the country declined 16.8% between 2019 and 2020, from 2,015,603 to 1,676,911¹.  The 2020 number of marriages is the lowest recorded in the U.S. since 1963².  The marriage rate (the number of marriages per 1,000 population) fell 16.4% from 2019 to 2020, from 6.1 marriages per 1,000 to 5.1 per 1,000.

WHAT HAPPENS IN VEGAS DIDN’T HAPPEN AS MUCH IN 2020

At the state level, the declines in marriage rates were widespread³ – 46 states and the District of Columbia saw declines in marriage during 2020.  The biggest declines occurred in the following states: Hawaii (47.9%), California (43.9%), New Mexico (43.3%), New York (37.5%) and Louisiana (33.3%).  All the declines were statistically significant except for in three states:  Idaho, South Dakota, and Wyoming, where declines were only 2%.

The highest marriage rate in the U.S. in 2020, as in years past, belonged to Nevada – but the rate was down 18.9% in that state from 2019.

There were also four states in which the marriage rate increased in 2020: Montana (31.6%), Texas (8.2%), Alabama (7.5%) and Utah (3.7%).

Some of the changes in 2020 may be partly due to reporting issues, which also became a factor during the pandemic.

State-by-state comparisons are available on the CDC/NCHS web site at: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/pressroom/stats_of_the_states.htm. 

¹ CDC/NCHS Vital Statistics System, https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/dvs/national-marriage-divorce-rates-00-20.pdf

² CDC/NCHS Vital Statistics System, https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/mvsr/supp/mv43_12s.pdf

³ CDC/NCHS Vital Statistics System, https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/dvs/state-marriage-rates-90-95-99-20.pdf

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Posted by jhl1

NCHS UPDATES”STATS OF THE STATES” PAGE WITH LATEST FINAL DATA

March 26, 2021

SOS_Nav_Page

The CDC National Center for Health Statistics web page “Stats of the States” has been updated to include the latest state-based final data on selected vital statistics topics, including:

  • General fertility rates
  • Teen birth rates
  • Selected other maternal and infant health measures
  • Marriage & divorce rates
  • Leading causes of death
  • Other high profile causes of death.

The site’s map pages allow users to rank states from highest to lowest or vice versa.  This latest version of “Stats of the States” also includes two new topics:  Life expectancy by state and COVID-19 death rates by state (provisional data on a quarterly basis, through Q3 of 2020).  All death rates are adjusted for age.  Rates are featured in the maps because they best illustrate the impact of a specific measure on a particular state.

The main “Stats of the States” page can be accessed at:  https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/pressroom/stats_of_the_states.htm

Leave a Comment » | Births, Cancer, cesarean, children, Deaths, divorce rate, Drug Overdose Deaths, elderly, first birth, heart attack, heroin, infant mortality, Influenza, kidney disease, leading causes of death, life expectancy, Marriage and Divorce, marriage rate, National Vital Statistics System, overdose, Preterm Births, State data, Stats of the States, stroke, suicide, Teen Births, unmarried childbearing, Vital Statistics System | Permalink
Posted by briantsai

Marriage Rates in the United States, 1900–2018

April 29, 2020

Questions for Sally Curtin, Health Statistician and Lead Author of “Marriage Rates in the United States, 1900–2018.”

Q: Why did you decide to do a report on marriages?

SC: NCHS computes and publishes marriage rates every year, in total and by State.  As we were working on the 2018 rates, we noticed that the rate had declined yet again, to an all-time low.  This prompted us to write a report looking at the trend over the long term, to help put the 2018 rate in perspective.

Q: Was there a specific finding in the data that surprised you from this report?

SC: The marriage rate had been declining since the early 1980s and by 2003 the rate had dropped below the previous low of 7.9 during the heart of the Great Depression (1932).  The rate had leveled off from 2009 to 2017 but then dropped again by 6% from 2017 to 2018.   This most recent drop after leveling off at a relatively low level does make you wonder how low it will go.

Q: Do you have any data on U.S. marriage rates before 1900?

SC: Yes, federal data on marriage go back to 1867 and are published in a previous report which also includes a detailed history of the marriage and divorce reporting.  However, the data from 1867-1899 were less reliable and often not national so we focused on 1900-2018 in this report.  Nonetheless, the 2018 marriage rate of 6.5 per 1,000 is lower than any of the rates from 1867-1899, which ranged between 8.6 and 9.6 per 1,000.

Q: What is the take home message for this report?

SC: The message is that a declining trend in the marriage rate which began in the early 1980s has continued into the 21st century and now the rate is at an all-time low, even lower than in the heart of the Great Depression.

Q: Do you have demographic breakdowns of U.S. marriage rates?

SC: NCHS collects counts of marriages but no longer collects detailed information on marriages—the characteristics of brides and groom from marriage certificates.  This collection ceased in the mid-1990s due to budgetary and priority considerations. But we do know from other data sources, namely data from the Current Population Survey from the Census Bureau, that the average age at first marriage has continued to increase and is about age 30 for males now and age 28 for females.

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Posted by briantsai

Fact or Fiction: Is the marriage rate in America at the lowest it’s been in over a century?

April 29, 2020

Source: National Vital Statistics System, 1910-2018

https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hestat/marriage_rate_2018/marriage_rate_2018.htm

Leave a Comment » | marriage rate, National Vital Statistics System, Vital Statistics System | Permalink
Posted by briantsai

State by State Health Data Source Updated on NCHS Web Site

April 19, 2017

CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics has updated its “Stats of the States” feature on the NCHS web site.  This resource features the latest state-by-state comparisons on key health indicators ranging from birth topics such as teen births and cesarean deliveries to leading causes of death and health insurance coverage.

Tabs have been added to the color-coded maps to compare trends on these topics between the most recent years (2015 and 2014) and going back a decade (2005) and in some cases further back.

To access the main “Stats of the States” page, use the following link:

https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/pressroom/stats_of_the_states.htm

Leave a Comment » | Alzheimer's disease, Births, Cancer, cesarean, children, chronic kidney disease, Deaths, diabetes, Flu, Health, health insurance, heart attack, Homicide, Hypertension, infant mortality, Influenza, kidney disease, leading causes of death, Marriage and Divorce, marriage rate, National Health Interview Survey, National Vital Statistics System, State data, stroke, suicide, Teen Births, uninsured, Vital Statistics System | Permalink
Posted by briantsai

Fact or Fiction: Is Nevada the Marriage Capital of the U.S.?

December 23, 2013

Las Vegas has earned – for better or worse – a reputation for quick weddings. The city came to be known as the Marriage Capital of the World as a result of the ease of acquiring a marriage license and the minimal costs involved. Las Vegas comprises a large part of Clark County, where the County’s website features a prominent page for marriage licenses.

So, has “the Vegas factor” been enough to position – and keep — Nevada in the U.S. lead for marriage?

According to NCHS data from the National Vital Statistics System, the Vegas factor certainly looks like it’s had major influence on the overall marriage rate in Nevada. While the state’s marriage rate has declined significantly since 1990, Nevada is still number one! The most recent marriage rate of 36.9 (provisional rate of marriages per 1,000 people performed in Nevada during 2011) shows that so many couples tie the knot in the Silver State that it ranked number one nationally in marriage rates – by a long shot. Hawaii ranked second with a marriage rate of 17.6 (due, presumably, to “the weather factor”).

Leave a Comment » | marriage rate, National Vital Statistics System | Permalink
Posted by coreylslavitt

New marriage and cohabitation data available

March 3, 2010

The latest in-depth data on marriage and cohabition (2002) is available here. This report features the probability that a first marriage will remain intact by sex, race, ethnicity, education, and family structure.

Marriage and Cohabitation Quick Look

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Posted by Megan Cox

How’s your state doing?

December 16, 2009

NCHS now has an easy way for you to check out where your state stands on a variety of health measures compared with the nation as a whole and other states, including the following:

  • Mortality from leading causes of death
  • Birth data, including births to unmarried mothers, teen births, cesarean deliveries, low birthweight births, prenatal care, and preterm births
  • Households using only wireless phones
  • Infant mortality rates
  • Marriage and divorce rates
  • Percentage of people under 65 without health insurance

To use this tool, click on the image below.

2 Comments | Births, Cancer, chronic kidney disease, Deaths, diabetes, divorce rate, Influenza, leading causes of death, Marriage and Divorce, marriage rate, National Center for Health Statistics, National Health Interview Survey, single mothers, State data, uninsured, unmarried childbearing, Vital Statistics System, wireless phone usage | Tagged: , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Megan Cox

New Marriage and Divorce Data

September 5, 2007

Provisional marriage and divorce data for 2006 are available at the NCHS website.

Leave a Comment » | divorce rate, Marriage and Divorce, marriage rate, National Center for Health Statistics, Vital Statistics System | Permalink
Posted by billcrews

Do 50% of marriages end in divorce?

July 6, 2007

We get this question all the time and the best we can say is that we don’t know. Based on data produced by the National Survey of Family Growth, 43% of first marriages by women aged 15-44 will end in a “disruption” within 15 years. Disruption is defined as either separation or divorce. As not all separations end in divorce (see Table 33 at the link) is would seem that the 50% figure is an overstatement.

The inestimable Cecil Adams of The Straight Dope takes a look at this “fact” and its probable genesis. While not endorsing this view, anyone writing about marriage and divorce should certainly consider the references he provides.

UPDATED DATA AVAILABLE HERE!

5 Comments | divorce rate, Marriage and Divorce, marriage rate, National Center for Health Statistics, National Survey of Family Growth | Permalink
Posted by billcrews

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