The 1973 Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision ruled that the Constitution protects a woman's liberty to choose to have an abortion. The Lebanon DEI Commission would like to share some information about abortion and reproductive health.
- Since the Roe v. Wade decision in 1973 legalizing abortion, the number of abortion-related deaths in the US has dropped dramatically; estimates suggest that the number of unsafe abortions, and the number of resulting deaths, decreased by more than 700% in the two years surrounding the 1973 decision. (https://www.statista.com/statistics/658555/number-of-abortion-deaths-us/; https://www.guttmacher.org/perspectives50/abortion-and-after-legalization)
- A vast majority of abortions – 92.7% in 2019 – are performed within the first trimester, with fewer than 1% occurring after 20 weeks. (https://www.cdc.gov/reproductivehealth/data_stats/index.htm)
- Women report a variety of reasons for abortions, including inability to support a child financially, being in a bad relationship, not being emotionally prepared or mature enough, or health-related reasons. (https://www.verywellhealth.com/reasons-for-abortion-906589)
- The people getting abortions are a diverse group: more than half have already had a child, many are black or hispanic, and more than a third identify as evangelical or Catholic. (https://concernedwomen.org/abortion-demographics-who-has-an-abortion/) According to research performed by the Guttmacher Institute in 2016, in that year, 75% of people getting abortions were from low income households, 62% were religiously affiliated, and 59% already had at least one child. The racial breakdown had 39% of abortion recipients as white, 28% as Black, 25% Hispanic, and 6% as AAPI. In terms of age, 60% were in their 20s, and only 12% were in their teens. https://www.guttmacher.org/infographic/2016/us-abortion-patients
- The average abortion costs $750 or less, but even still, the 1976 Hyde Amendment has generally restricted the use of federal funds for abortion except in extreme cases. (https://www.plannedparenthood.org/learn/ask-experts/how-much-does-an-abortion-cost; https://www.guttmacher.org/fact-sheet/hyde-amendment)