Legal Abortions Fell Around 6 Percent in Two Months After End of Roe v. Wade
“In order to survive, we will have to make the most of each day.” – Michael J. Fox
A recent study by the Center for Reproductive Rights, a non-profit law firm in New York, which opposes abortion, reports that over a period of 18 months after the Supreme Court’s landmark Roe v. Wade decision, abortion fell 6 percent in the state of Iowa. Iowa has the second highest maternal mortality rate in the nation, one of the highest adolescent pregnancy rates, and the highest teen birth rate in the nation.
By contrast, in California, where abortion is extremely regulated, abortion fell by 14 percent in the period after Roe. California has the highest maternal mortality rate in the nation, one of the highest teen pregnancy rate, and the lowest teen birth rate in the nation.
In many parts of the world, such as Haiti, Nigeria, and Kenya, where abortion is relatively common, abortion has increased dramatically since the Supreme Court decision. In places like Haiti and Ethiopia, where abortion is more common than in the United States, abortion increased almost 90 percent in the period following Roe.
The abortion rate in Iowa fell by 6 percent from the previous year and has already declined in the last 18 months. In California, abortion declined by 14 percent due to the enactment of the Reproductive Feto-Mental Health State Bill, which has caused abortion to fall by almost 30 percent since Roe was decided.
In two months following the Supreme Court decision, abortion dropped by over 6 percent in states with low abortion rates, such as Vermont (4.4 percent), Washington (3.6 percent), and Pennsylvania (3.3 percent). The abortion rate in these states fell over 18 percent just prior to and during the abortion-control policies of Roe.
These data demonstrate that Roe v. Wade was not only misguided, but has failed to result in a reduction in abortion rates.