Hospitals around the state are projecting a slight increase in birth rates. Nurse Deborah Tell at Iowa Methodist Medical Center in Des Moines says the economy is finally stable enough for people to have children.  “You know I do think it has increased, especially here at our hospital. You know I look at the national statistics that have said the last few years the birth rates went down, but now they are coming back up again,” Tell says. Tell says the weather in the winter months at the start of the year can sometimes have an impact on the birthrate.

“We can look back and see when there was maybe a major storm and schools were closed and businesses were closed — or if it’s extra cold and people don’t go out as much,” Tell says. The eighth and ninth months of the year, August and September, are known for having some of the highest birth rates of the year.

(Radio Iowa)