About the New York State County/ZIP Code Perinatal Data Profile


Data Source:

NYSDOH Vital Statistics Program
Vital statistics data from a three-year period are used to create ZIP code based tables of commonly requested perinatal data. Tables for individual counties are provided.a

The terms used in the data tables:

ZIP Code
United States Postal Service (Zone Improvement Plan) ZIP CodeTM. When a ZIP code crosses county boundaries, the ZIP code is included in the county where the largest portion of the Zip code is located.
Total Births
The total resident births recorded during the three-year time period.
Premature Births
Births that occurred prior to 37 weeks of gestation.
Low Birth Weight
Births weighing between 100-2499 grams.
Out-of-Wedlock
The number of out of wedlock live births is imputed. New York State Public Health Law (4135) prohibits the specific statement on the birth certificate as to whether the child was born in- or out-of-wedlock. Out-of-wedlock live births are defined as those births for which a mother reports that a paternity acknowledgement has been filed or births for which no father information is supplied by the mother.
Medicaid or Self-pay
Medicaid births- births to mothers whose primary financial coverage was Medicaid, PCAP, MOMS, Child Health Plus A, Medicaid Managed Care, or Family Health Plus
Self-pay births–births to mothers without health insurance.
Late or No Prenatal care
Prenatal care was initiated during the third trimester of pregnancy or not at all.
Infant Deaths
Deaths occured less than twelve months of age.
Infant Death Rate (infant deaths per 1,000 live births)
Neonatal Deaths
Death of an infant less than 28 days of age.
Neonatal Death Rate (neonatal deaths per 1,000 live births)
Teen Birth Rate
Births to females ages 15-19 per 1,000 female population ages 15-19. Rates are computed using the 3-year average number of teen births and the population for the middle year of the three-year time period.
Teen Pregnancy Rate
Pregnancies (births+abortions+spontaneous fetal deaths) to females ages 15-19 per 1,000 female population ages 15-19. Rates are computed using the 3-year average number of teen pregnancies and the population for the middle year of the three- year time period.

a Vital Records (Vital Statistics):
Vital Event Registration:
New York State consists of two registration areas, New York City and New York State Exclusive of New York City (also referred as Rest of State). New York City (NYC) includes the five counties of Bronx, Kings (Brooklyn), New York (Manhattan), Queens and Richmond (Staten Island); the remaining 57 counties comprise New York State Exclusive of New York City. The Bureau of Vital Records, New York State Department of Health, processes data from live birth, death, fetal death and marriage certificates recorded in New York State Exclusive of New York City. Through a cooperative agreement, the New York State Department of Health receives data on live births, deaths, and fetal deaths recorded in New York City from the New York City Department of Health and on live births and deaths recorded outside of New York State to residents of New York State from other states and Canada.

Vital Event indicators for NYC geographical areas reported by NYSDOH and DOHMH are different since the former includes possibly all NYC residents' events and the latter reports NYC events to NYC residents. The indicators may also differ due to timing and/or completeness of data.

Note:

  1. Data are presented by geographic area of residence.
  2. Tables do not display the results for ZIP code areas with fewer than 10 births during the 3-year time period. The county total includes the results for all ZIP codes allocated to the county.
  3. Teen pregnancy and birth rate statistics are not reported for ZIP codes with less than 30 resident females ages 15-19. The county rate includes results for all ZIP codes allocated to the county.
  4. Teen pregnancy and birth rates use population estimates from Claritas Corporation.
  5. The county total on each table is computed by summarizing the ZIP code data allocated for each county. Any numbers, rates, or percentages in the county total row may differ from county data reported elsewhere on the DOH website. This is because county level vital statistics data are usually aggregated based on the county of residence (regardless of ZIP code). Thus, vital events among residents of the same ZIP code (which sometimes cross county boundaries) may be reported in different counties. For this report, events among residents of ZIP codes that cross county boundaries are all reported in the county where the largest portion of the county is located. For example, although ZIP code 12303 is in both Albany and Schenectady counties, all data for ZIP code 12303 appears in the Albany county table.

If you have questions about these data, contact the Public Health Information Group at (518) 474-2543.