The national conversation around abortion has led to many misleading assumptions regarding who gets abortions and why. Here are the most recent statistics from the Guttmacher Institute and NARAL Pro-Choice America that provide more information about abortion and abortion access in the United States.
* We use the term “women” below to be consistent with the terms of the research, with the acknowledgement that gender non-binary folks are excluded and/or misrepresented by the language of this data.
How often do abortions happen?
In 2017, 18% of pregnancies (excluding miscarriages) ended in abortion, an approximate total of 862,320 abortions performed in the United States.
At 2014 abortion rates, approximately one in four women* will have an abortion by age 45.
Who gets abortions?
39% of patients receiving abortions were identified as white, 28% as black, 25% as Hispanic, and 9% as of other races and ethnicities.
59% of patients receiving abortions had already given birth at least once.
75% of patients receiving abortions were classified as poor or low-income in relation to the federal poverty level ($15,730 for a family of two).
Over 50% of patients receiving abortions were in their 20s. 12% were aged 10-19.
94% of patients receiving abortions were identified as straight or heterosexual, 4% as bisexual, fewer than 1% as lesbian, gay, or homosexual, and 1% as something other than straight, gay, or bisexual.
62% of patients receiving abortions reported a religious affiliation. 24% were Catholic, 30% were mainline or evangelical Protestant, 8% identified with some other religion.
53% of patients receiving abortions paid for their procedure out of pocket. 24% paid with Medicaid.
35% of patients had Medicaid coverage, 31% had private insurance, 3% had insurance through HealthCare.gov or a different type of insurance.
55% of patients receiving abortions were not living with a partner in the month they became pregnant, 14% were married, 31% were cohabiting.
What does abortion access look like in Connecticut?
In 2017…
11,910 abortions were provided in CT.
There were 54 facilities providing abortion in CT, 25 of which were clinics (including 1 private clinic). This represents a 4% increase in clinics since 2014.
General Regulations:
An abortion may be performed in CT at or after viability (viability being 24 weeks into a pregnancy) only if the patient’s life or health is endangered.
All abortions after the second trimester of pregnancy must be provided in a hospital.
All clinics must hire counselors who have or who are supervised by a person with a graduate degree or training in social work, psychology, counseling, nursing, or ministry.
Only a physician licensed to practice medicine and surgery in the state may provide abortion services.
CT allows anybody eligible for state medical assistance for general health care to obtain public funds for abortion.
Minors, under the age of 16, who would like to receive abortion services, must first receive counseling from a licensed professional in CT.
What does abortion access look like nationally?
For more state-by-state information, check out this interactive map produced by the Guttmacher Institute, charting the number of abortion clinics across counties in every state.
What is our project doing? Since we started in 2012, approximately…
5,000 patients served
70 students trained
10 community members trained
30 clinic staff and practitioners worked with
700 hours spent in clinic