After two years of rising numbers, births in the United States saw a 2 percent decline in 2023, coinciding with the end of the Covid pandemic.

A report released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) National Center for Health Statistics on Tuesday recorded 3,596,017 babies born in 2023. This marks a decrease from the 3,667,758 births in 2022 and the 3,664,292 in 2021.

The recent drop in birth rates is double the average annual decline of 1 percent recorded between 2014 and 2019. However, it’s only half of the sharp 4 percent decline that occurred between 2019 and 2020.

Additionally, the CDC reported a 5 percent increase in abortion rates in 2021, the year before the Supreme Court overturned Roe vs. Wade, though these figures may not fully capture the total number of abortions due to incomplete or missing data from some states.

The report also noted that the fertility rate for women aged 15 to 44 fell to 54.5 births per 1,000 women, a 3 percent drop from 56.0 in 2022 and 56.3 in 2021.

Over the past decade, fertility rates in the U.S. have steadily declined by 2 to 4 percent annually. “Since the most recent high in 2007, the number of births has declined 17%, and the general fertility rate has declined 21%,” the report states.

The report did not offer explanations for the ongoing decline in birth and fertility rates, a trend that has persisted in American society since the 1970s and intensified during the 2008-2009 financial crisis, according to ABC News.

The CDC report also highlighted concerns about prenatal care, revealing that fewer women are receiving this crucial aspect of healthcare during pregnancy.

Without proper prenatal care, babies are at higher risk for low birth weight and are five times more likely to die, according to the Office on Women’s Health, part of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.

Teen pregnancies have also decreased, with the pregnancy rate for teens aged 15-19 dropping by 4 percent from 2022 and 6 percent from 2021. Globally, birth rates have declined since the Covid pandemic, a trend that Elon Musk has called “the biggest threat” to humanity, warning of a “population collapse.” He has repeatedly urged people to have more children.