08 Mar Is it True? Report Finds Abortion Rate Declined to Historic Low

You may have heard the recent news reports that the annual number of abortions in the United States has dropped to under one million for the rst time since 1975. We wish we could celebrate this news, but we’re skeptical. Here’s why:

• Planned Parenthood knows they’re in the “hot seat”right now with Congress seriously considering ending their federal funding (they receive $528 million in taxpayer dollars per year!), plus they have been scrambling to improve their public image ever since it was revealed that some of their abortionists were selling the body parts of aborted babies.

• Planned Parenthood would like to appear successful especially since recent polls show that abortion is becoming more repugnant to Americans. e shi of opinion has been most dramatic among young people, as recent surveys of Millennials (individuals aged 18-31) found that 53% think abortion should be either ille- gal or legal only in cases of rape, incest, or to save the life of the mother (source: Students for Life of America; surveys conducted by the Barna Group). In the past, young adults were more likely than any other age group to say abortion should be legal.

• The Guttmacher Institute released the report, and they are the “research arm” of Planned Parenthood – the largest abortion provider in the world. e stats they provide are at their discretion. All reporting is voluntary, and the data came from surveys of abortion providers. is study was not done by an independent third party and there is no law requiring accurate statistics. The bottom line is this: we don’t trust the source of this study, knowing that it comes from abortion providers who have a lot to lose this year with a new Administra- tion in o ce. But whatever the true number of abortions per year may be, we at PROLIFE Across AMERICA know that we won’t stop spreading the Truth and o ering help to those in need until that number is ZERO. We hope you’ll continue partnering with us until all babies are given a chance at life!

More About the Report
The Guttmacher Institute report claims that the number of abortions in the country fell to under one million per year (926,200 in 2014). It claims that there were 14.6 abortions per 1,000 women of childbearing age (ages 15-44) in 2014, which would be the lowest recorded rate since abortion was legalized in 1973.

The authors suggested potential reasons for this decline, citing “improved contraception use,” especially long- acting birth control options like IUDs, and “a wave of abortion restrictions passed at the state level over the past five years.”
e study found that the sharpest declines in abortion rates were in the West and the South (16% in each region), with smaller declines in the Northeast (11%) and the Midwest (9%). The study found no correlation between the number of clinics and abortion rates. For example, in the Midwest, the number of clinics declined 22%, but the abortion rate in that region declined 9%. In the Northeast, however, the number of clinics increased 14% and the abortion rate declined 11%.

The report analyzed surveys sent to abortion providers from 2011 – 2014.