In 2014, 1 in 3 pregnant women in New York City obtained an abortion, latest CDC figures reveal

The latest figures from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention have revealed that a third of pregnant women in New York City obtained an abortion in 2014.

The report released by the CDC the day after Thanksgiving had indicated that New York City had the highest abortion rate in the U.S. in 2014, with 34.8 abortions for every 1,000 women between the ages of 15 and 44.

The city also had the highest abortion ratio, with 575 abortions for every 1,000 live births. A total of 67,620 abortions were performed in the city, compared to approximately 117,600 births. New York City was followed by Florida, which had 328 abortions for every 1,000 births, Life News reported.

While the abortion rate remains high in New York City, the total number of abortions across the U.S. has fallen to a historic low.

CDC figures have shown that the number of reported abortions has dropped to 652,639 in 2014, compared to 664,435 in 2013.

The largest decline was seen among pregnant teenagers, with a 46 percent decrease in the abortion rate since 2008. The report noted that about 59 percent of all abortions in the U.S. were performed on women in their 20s.

Despite the overall decline, the report found that the abortion rate for African-Americans increased from 35.6 percent in 2013 to 36 percent in 2014.

Planned Parenthood's annual reports have also shown a drop in abortions in the same period. According to the abortion provider, the number of abortions has decreased from 327,653 abortions in 2013–2014 to 323,999 abortions in 2014–2015. However, the organization reported an increase the abortion rate in 2015–2016, when it performed 328,348 abortions.

Some have attributed the decline in the abortion rate to the more effective use of contraception, the closure of many abortion clinics, as well as the falling pregnancy rate.

An analysis by the Guttmacher Institute has revealed that access to abortion services remained largely the same between 2000 and 2014 for the majority of American women. During the same period, the use of contraceptive methods like hormonal birth control and condoms increased, especially among teenagers.

Laura Lindberg, a principal research scientist with the institute, noted that there had been no significant change in adolescent sexual activity during that period.

"Our new data suggest that recent declines in teens' risk of pregnancy—and in their pregnancy rates—are driven by increased contraceptive use," she said.

In an article published by the National Review, Ave Maria University professor Michael J. New criticized the media's explanation for the decline.

"Unsurprisingly, most of the media coverage gives much of the credit for the abortion-rate decrease to increased contraception use," the professor wrote.

"There is some evidence that there has been a short-term decline in the incidence of unintended pregnancies, but another key factor behind the 50 percent abortion-rate decline since 1980 is the fact that a smaller percentage of unintended pregnancies result in an abortion," he added.