Contraceptive Use in the United States, 1973-1976

The pill and sterilization were the main methods used by U.S. married couples in 1976 to prevent pregnancy. In 1973 the poor were more likely than the more affluent, and blacks as likely as whites, to use the most effective methods. By 1976 this was no longer true, because more blacks turned to traditional and folk methods and the sterilization increase was largely limited to more affluent whites.