Facts About Abortion
Geographic abortion statistics plus facts relating to law, history and more.
U.S. Abortion Statistics
Facts and figures relating to the frequency of abortion in the United States.
The abortion statistics on this page come primarily from the Guttmacher Institute and the Centers for Disease Control. Current, nationwide abortion data is available through 2011. Additional, state-level abortion statistics are available for 2012.
State Abortion Facts
Comparative state abortion stats by rank, total, percentage, and total clinics.
The data table on this page provides a state-by-state comparison of abortion totals, rates and percentages—along with the total number of abortion facilities in each state. It also serves as a gateway to additional state-level abortion statistics.
Alabama Abortion Facts
Alaska Abortion Facts
Arizona Abortion Facts
Arkansas Abortion Facts
California Abortion Facts
Colorado Abortion Facts
Connecticut Abortion Facts
Delaware Abortion Facts
District of Columbia Abortion Facts
Florida Abortion Facts
Georgia Abortion Facts
Hawaii Abortion Facts
Idaho Abortion Facts
Illinois Abortion Facts
Indiana Abortion Facts
Iowa Abortion Facts
Kansas Abortion Facts
Kentucky Abortion Facts
Louisiana Abortion Facts
Maine Abortion Facts
Maryland Abortion Facts
Massachusetts Abortion Facts
Michigan Abortion Facts
Minnesota Abortion Facts
Mississippi Abortion Facts
Missouri Abortion Facts
Montana Abortion Facts
Nebraska Abortion Facts
Nevada Abortion Facts
New Hampshire Abortion Facts
New Jersey Abortion Facts
New Mexico Abortion Facts
New York Abortion Facts
North Carolina Abortion Facts
North Dakota Abortion Facts
Ohio Abortion Facts
Oklahoma Abortion Facts
Oregon Abortion Facts
Pennsylvania Abortion Facts
Rhode Island Abortion Facts
South Carolina Abortion Facts
South Dakota Abortion Facts
Tennessee Abortion Facts
Texas Abortion Facts
Utah Abortion Facts
Vermont Abortion Facts
Virginia Abortion Facts
Washington Abortion Facts
West Virginia Abortion Facts
Wisconsin Abortion Facts
Wyoming Abortion Facts
Canadian Abortion Statistics
Facts and figures relating to the frequency of abortion in Canada.
U.K. Abortion Statistics
Facts and figures relating to the frequency of abortion in Great Britain.
Republic of Ireland Abortion Statistics
Facts and figures relating to the frequency of abortion in Ireland.
Australian Abortion Statistics
Facts and figures relating to the frequency of abortion in Australia.
New Zealand Abortion Statistics
Facts and figures relating to the frequency of abortion in New Zealand.
Worldwide Abortion Statistics
Facts and figures relating to the incidence of abortion worldwide.
U.S. Abortion Law
An overview of federal abortion rulings in the United States.
For almost 50 years, the single decision of seven non-elected men saddled the United States with one of the most liberal abortion policies in the world. It survived decades of legal challenges until the Court finally conceded in 2022 that the Constitution does not guarantee a right to abortion.
State Abortion Laws
An examination of state-level efforts to limit or promote abortion.
Though individual states have retained some narrow, legal outlets for regulating abortion, Roe vs. Wade forbids them from outlawing abortion during the first trimester and binds them to an extremely broad "health" exception during the second and third trimester.
Fetal Homicide Laws (U.S.)
Unless the context is abortion, it is a federal crime to harm an unborn child.
As the law stands today, if a pregnant woman on her way to an abortion clinic (where her child will be legally killed), is assaulted in the street, causing the death of her unborn child, those who assaulted her would be guilty of manslaughter.
U.S. Abortion History
The 200-year history of abortion in America goes back well before 1973.
For those who support abortion, there is a tendency to argue that it has always been widely practiced and broadly accepted. Those who oppose abortion, however, generally argue that its permissive and widespread use is a recent phenomena. The truth probably lies somewhere in between.
Ancient Abortion History
A look at the methods and perceived morality of abortion in the ancient world.
While the attitudes toward abortion widely varied in the Ancient world, the historical evidence strongly suggests that abortion and infanticide were common practices. Below is a collection of written testimony to ancient views and methods of abortion from ancient Greek and Roman writers. Click on the links to read the quotations in their context.
Birth Control and Abortion
Be wary when you hear the abortion industry suggesting ways to reduce abortion.
Does Planned Parenthood really have an interest in reducing the number of abortions? Should we take them seriously when they suggest ways to eliminate one of their primary income streams? Birth control cannot replace abortion, and the abortion industry knows that full well.
Can Birth Control Use Cause an Abortion?
Barrier methods cannot cause abortion; hormonal methods are less certain.
Some birth control methods provide a physical barrier to conception without altering a woman's hormones. Others rely on hormones to prevent ovulation and restrict implantation—at least in theory. Whether or not hormonal birth control can cause an abortion is the subject of much debate.
Stem Cell Research and Abortion
Opposition to abortion and opposition to embryonic stem cell research go hand in hand.
Embryonic stem research cannot take place apart from dead human embryos. Embryonic stem cells cannot be culled without killing the embryo. Whether these tiny human beings are explicitly killed for research purposes or not, the ethics of the matter do not change.
Vaccines and Abortion
Some of today’s most common vaccines were derived from aborted fetal cells.
The human diploid cells used to create some of the most common vaccines in the world were originally derived from aborted human beings. That creates an ethical dilemma for those who must explain why these fetuses are human enough to provide the human cells necessary for such cultivation, but not human enough to be protected under the law.
