Abortion bans have not reduced abortions

Let’s turn to an unpleasant subject — abortion.

When the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the red flags were sent flying.

The message: As more states eliminated or restricted abortion, the number of the procedures would go down.

They have not.

The zero abortion rate in states where it is banned has been more than offset in states permitting it.

This column is not pro- or anti-abortion. It presents facts for you to use in building an informed opinion.

Such as that two-thirds of Americans accept abortion in some or all cases, while one-third are opposed.

Abortions actually have  risen after Roe was reversed, according to the well-respected Guttmacher Institute.  

That seems surprising given the hysterical fearmongering of the “pro choice” side that millions of women would be denied “health services.” 

They were wrong.

Some were unable to obtain abortions, but not all that many.

Why? 

1- Because no woman was more than two states away from a state that provided the service.

2- In the case of poor women, there was no shortage of philanthropic nonprofits willing to pay their transport and expenses.

3- The majority of abortions today are not surgical, but are medically induced, an estimated two-thirds, says Guttmacher. It is not all that hard to get those meds. An estimated 10% of abortions in states where it is banned were accomplished through telehealth care and prescriptions to patients.

There is pushback in some states, but a black market is certain to develop for those drugs.

So what’s the message here?

As with most things, the outcome of change is never as beneficial as promised, nor as terrible as feared.