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  • Title: U.S. abortions: up? down?
    Author: Haub C, Kent M.
    Journal: Popul Today; 1987 Nov; 15(11):6-7. PubMed ID: 12268741.
    Abstract:
    The 2 primary sources of data on the number of abortions performed in the US--the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the Alan Guttmacher Institute (AGI)--provide conflicting information on abortion trends. According to CDC, the number of abortions performed in the US declined between 1982 and 1983 for the first time since record keeping began in 1969. The AGI showed a slight increase in these two years, an increase that has continued through 1985. However, both of these sources show that the rapid increase in abortions experienced during the 1970s has levelled off and the ratio of abortions to births and to pregnancies has declined. Political opposition to abortion may have produced a reluctance on the part of providers to report data on abortions performed, thus accounting for the lower CDC estimate. Possible explanations for a levelling off of abortion rates and ratios in recent years include improved ability to prevent unwanted pregnancies, a greater tendency to carry unwanted pregnancies to term, and a decline in the availability of abortions due to economic and political pressures. The number of abortion providers identified by AGI has dropped from a peak of 2908 in 1982 to 2680 in 1985. The characteristics of women seeking abortions have also changed. Women who obtained legal abortions in 1983 were more likely to be unmarried, black, and over age 20 years than their 1973 counterparts. Also, women in 1983 were more likely to seek abortion in the first 10 weeks and to use abortion to prevent a first birth than in 1973.
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