Raw material for the ZDF-Blickpunkt-Sendung of 19.09.1993 for the article "Geburtenrückgang" (Declining birth rate) In 1993, the territory of the new federal states recorded a sharp decline in the birth rate. The article investigates possible reasons for this and tries to present young women and mothers with consequences and countermeasures in interviews with doctors, politicians. State financial support such as maternity benefits or the social and financial situation of young women, which often hampers their desire to have children, are important issues here.