The University of Minnesota's Center for Healthy Youth Development, a unit of the Medical School, has released its 2026 Minnesota Adolescent Sexual Health Report, and the numbers point in a good direction: teen birth rates fell 6% and pregnancy rates dropped 15% from 2023 to 2024, while gonorrhea rates among adolescents plummeted 25% between 2024 and 2025.
The center tracks the trend in how many teens are having sex at all. Only 7% of Minnesota ninth graders reported ever having had sex in 2025, compared with 29% in 1992. Among those who are sexually active, condom use also increased last year.
"Youth are delaying sexual activity, communicating more with partners and making informed decisions," said Jill Farris.
The report's broader picture is less rosy. American Indian youth had birth rates nearly 10 times higher than white youth in 2024, and Black youth had gonorrhea rates 18 times higher than white youth. Teen birth rates also ran higher in Greater Minnesota than in the Twin Cities metro. The report notes a growing share of young people identify as LGBTQ+ or gender diverse, a shift the center is factoring into its data and outreach.