Family building in the US has an interesting paradox. On the one hand, I saw a the continuing decline in the US birth rate driven by a combination of social and economic trendswhich causes many women to delay, limit or even give up having children. However, despite the birth rate reaching an all-time low, a recent survey by the Pew Research Center found that 51 percent of young adults who are not actually parents yet do i want kids one day Only 18% of young adults surveyed said they did not want children at all. A recent Gallup poll showed that Americans believe that the ideal family includes three or more children, a view that has grown steadily in recent years and is currently at the most widespread rate of agreement since 1971. Is America about to see a second baby boom?

The baby boom between 1946 and 1964 was attributed to many factors: soldiers returning home with a desire to settle down, economic optimism in a post-World War II economy, and lower rates of participation in the military. women’s work after the mass mobilization of the war years. . Another contributor was the bipartisan GI Bill of 1944, which stimulated jobs and home ownership. The resulting baby boom reversed a century of declining fertility. We live in a different economic and political era today. Several new factors are emerging that may lead to an imminent baby boom, distinct from the first. These are about unlocking the backlog of requests from people who want children but are on hold for the two reasons cited above: timing and affordability. Even in our divided nation, the rising U.S. fertility rate is a clear bipartisan issue as both political parties rush to propose solutions in the upcoming 2024 presidential election.

Time as a reason for delayed parenthood

Many women delay childbearing as they pursue higher education, career advancement, and other personal and professional goals. Correspondingly, fertility preservation rates have increased by a 30% year-over-year increase in egg freezing cycles. One day soon, these “egg banks” will be put to use. in relation to, IVF treatments have also seen a sharp rise as women build families later in life. Until now, these options have been available to few people – those with progressive employer benefits and those with access to fertility financing solutions. But the governor of California. Gavin Newsom just passed o the law requiring insurers to cover IVF treatmentswhich means our nation’s most populous state can only get bigger. Significant backlash erupted over an Alabama Supreme Court ruling in February that said embryos created through IVF should be considered children. Governor of Alabama. Kay Ivey he signed a bill a few weeks later granting IVF service providers and recipients both civil and criminal immunity. As the political winds shift in favor of women’s health, even the Trump campaign is lining up behind this idea at the national level.

Beyond future government aid, investment in reproductive technology has also increased. VCs have been pouring money into fertility startups for several years, investing heavily $874 million in 2023 single. These venture-backed startups include chain fertility clinics CONSIDERATEegg freezing and third party breeding platform Cofertilityand fertility funding benefits such as Future family and Progeny. Never before have Americans had so much choice, support or financial assistance to support family building timeline. And as these companies’ high growth rates show, they’re using it.

Affordability as a reason for delaying parenthood

Today parents spend about $240,000 for each child from birth to age 18, putting an average of one-fifth of their annual income toward child-related expenses. Child care costs are particularly prohibitive before elementary school, causing some parents to drop out of the workforce. The US is the only wealthy country without federally paid parental leave. Having children can be expensive, time-consuming, and physically draining—enough to discourage would-be parents from growing their families. The US Surgeon General even issued a consultative on the mental health and well-being of parents this year.

Democrats and Republicans alike can agree that family building needs to become attractive again to young Americans, aand not only for demographic reasons, but also for economic stability. The 2024 presidential election is for the first time family-friendly programs like baby tax credits, paid family leave, and affordable child care are in the spotlight with bipartisan support—we’ve finally reached the tipping point. As the Federal Reserve begins to do so lower interest rates to stimulate the labor market and investment activity, we are again entering a period of economic expansion. Coupled with the pent-up desire to build a family and a whole host of fertility solutions and incentives with the potential to unlock it, we may once again be on the cusp of a unique set of conditions that parallel those that created the baby boom- 1946 to 1964.

Although there have been significant advances in the medical field, one area has remained unchanged – the US approach to maternal health care. Unlike similar nations, America is in the midst of a maternal health crisis because of a broken, outdated system where women often receive incomplete, one-size-fits-all reactive care. Our maternal mortality rates exceed those of similar nationswith fish Almost 50,000 additional misses per year. The results are much worse for mothers of colorwith death rates three to four times higher than their white counterparts. The United States also has high rates of preterm births, NICU stays, and maternal depression. These statistics come against a backdrop of severe shortages of obstetricians and gynecologists nationwide and hospitals closing maternity units due to the unviable economy, with 36 percent of U.S. counties. designated as “maternity care deserts”.

There is an urgent need to rebuild the maternal health system. Our existing infrastructure is ill-equipped to support an influx of pregnancies and births. We need to work together – policymakers, healthcare providers, investors, families and communities – to improve maternity care and make it more accessible and affordable for all families. We are making progress, with many states expanding programs to increasing access to midwives, doulas and postpartum care. We are on the threshold of a new era of family building in America. But it will take a village to get there.