Abortions are up 11 per cent in US states where it is still legal

Since the US Supreme Court overturned the constitutional right to abortion, the number of abortions performed in the US has declined. However, in states where the procedure remains legal, abortions have increased by just over 10 per cent.

In June, the US Supreme Court repealed Roe v Wade, the landmark ruling that protected the right to an abortion for nearly 50 years. Since then, 13 states have banned abortion and five have severely restricted it. An additional 10 states have bans that are currently being challenged in state courts.

Ushma Upadhyay at the University of California, San Francisco, and her colleagues analysed data on the number of abortions performed in the US between April 2022, two months before the court’s decision, and August 2022. Abortion numbers before that period had been generally increasing since 2017.

Nearly 80 per cent of abortion providers agreed to disclose with the researchers how many abortions they performed each month for their analysis, representing an estimated 82 per cent of all abortions in the US. For providers that didn’t contribute, the researchers extrapolated from several data sources, including state health departments, to get a clearer picture on abortion rates.

The team found that the number of abortions nationwide declined 6 per cent in the analysis period, but increased by 11 per cent in states with minimal restrictions on the procedure.

The increase is probably due to an influx of people travelling from states where abortion is banned to access care, says Upadhyay. “We knew people would have to travel [out-of-state] for an abortion, but we didn’t know just how many would be unable to make trip,” she says.

The central southern region of the US, which includes Texas and Alabama, saw the greatest reductions in abortions – a 96 per cent decrease. In that region, abortions can still occur to save the life of the parent. Meanwhile, the western Midwest, which includes Kansas and Minnesota, had the greatest increase in abortions at about 12 per cent.

In another recent study, Upadhyay and her colleagues used census data to calculate the average time it takes for women of reproductive age in the US to reach the nearest abortion clinic. They found that since Roe was overturned, the average travel time has increased from about 28 minutes to over 100 minutes. Black, Indigenous and other people of colour experienced the greatest increases in travel time to abortion facilities.

Travelling long distances for an abortion is impossible for many people, says Upadhyay, particularly those who cannot take much time off work or who must care for small children.

These people may have to rely on non-profit organisations that provide abortion medications, which can pose legal risks, says Rachel Jones at the Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive health research and advocacy organisation in New York City.

A recent meta-analysis of 36 studies found that compared with planned pregnancies, unintended pregnancies are associated with higher rates of prepartum and postpartum depression and domestic violence. Babies from unintended pregnancies are also more likely to be born preterm or with low birth weight.

“We know that those denied an abortion are more likely to experience debt, eviction and bankruptcy, which impacts them and their children for years to come,” says Upadhyay. “When someone wants to have an abortion, but is unable to get one, the impact on their lives can be devastating.”