2010 to 2023 Saw Decline in Births, Increase in Deaths in the United States

FRIDAY, Aug. 29, 2025 (HealthDay News) — From 2010 to 2023, the number of births in the United States declined, and the number of deaths increased, according to the Aug. 27 National Vital Statistics Reports, a publication from the National Center for Health Statistics.

Brady E. Hamilton, Ph.D., from the National Center for Health Statistics in Hyattsville, Maryland, and colleagues present and compare trends in U.S. births and deaths from 2010 through 2023.

The researchers observed a 10 percent decrease in the number of births for the United States from 2010 through 2023. From 2010 to 2016, births were essentially stable, followed by a decline from 2016 to 2019, and fluctuation from 2019 through 2023. In contrast, there was a 25 percent increase in the number of deaths from 2010 to 2023, with an increase from 2010 to 2019 and fluctuation from 2019 to 2023. From 2010 to 2023, the crude birth rate declined 18 percent, with a 0.8 and 2.0 percent decrease per year from 2010 to 2015 and from 2015 to 2019, respectively; the rate fluctuated from 2019 to 2023. The crude death rate increased 15 percent during the study period. From 2010 to 2023, the birth-to-death ratio declined by 28 percent, with decreases of 1.6 and 2.8 percent per year from 2010 through 2014 and from 2014 through 2019, respectively, and fluctuation from 2019 to 2023. From 2010 to 2023, the ratio generally declined for the three largest race and Hispanic-origin groups.

“Differences in the numbers and rates of births and deaths narrowed from 2010 through 2023, particularly during and after the pandemic,” the authors write.

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