Draft ruling suggests U.S. Supreme Court may be set to strike down Roe v. wade, a landmark judgment that legalized abortion across the country in 1973. If such a decision were to be made, it would then be up to each state to ban or authorize abortion, which would put an end to nearly 50 years of protection of this right at the federal level. Overview of the current state of abortion across the country.
States in Roe’s Absence
A total of 23 states have laws that could prohibit or severely limit access to abortion with the overturning of the ruling Roe v. wade, according to an analysis by the Guttmacher Institute, a research organization that provides statistics on birth control and abortion in the United States and around the world. In 9 states, restrictions were put in place even before the shutdown and were never lifted. In contrast, 16 states and the District of Washington currently have laws that would protect the right to abortion.
Five states had only one abortion clinic in 2017
In 2017, 5 states had only one clinic offering abortion services: Kentucky, Mississippi, North Dakota, South Dakota and West Virginia. California had the most clinics (161).
Loss of clinics in 19 states
In nearly 20 states, the number of abortion clinics declined between 2014 and 2017. Texas is the state that lost the most clinics, with 7 fewer facilities, while New York State saw fewer 18 news open.
Women living in a county without a clinic
In 2017, 89% of US counties did not have a clinic offering abortion care, according to the Guttmacher Institute. In Mississippi and Wyoming, more than 90% of women ages 15 to 44 lived in a county without a clinic.
Downward abortions
In 2017, approximately 862,320 abortions were performed in clinical settings in the United States, representing a 7% decline since 2014. Also in 2017, the abortion rate fell to 13.5 per 1,000 women aged 15 at 44, the lowest rate recorded since intervention was legalized in 1973.