Abortions have increased, even for women in states with near-total bans

In nearly every state that has banned abortion, the number of women receiving abortions increased between 2020 and the end of 2023, according to the most comprehensive account of all abortions by state since the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

In the 13 states that enacted nearly total abortion bans, the number of women receiving abortions increased in all but three. Some women traveled to clinics in states where abortions were legal. Others ordered abortion pills from U.S. doctors online, after doctors in other states started writing prescriptions under shield laws that protect them when they provide mail-order pills to patients in states with bans.

The only states with bans where abortion fell during this period were Texas, where the decrease was small; Idaho, where it was larger; and Oklahoma, where the data showed an unusually large number of abortions in 2020.

Nationwide, the study also found abortions have continued to rise. There were roughly 587,000 abortions in the first half of this year, an increase of more than 12% from the same period in 2023.

“It’s a surprise to everyone,” said David S. Cohen, co-author of the coming book “After Dobbs: How the Supreme Court Ended Roe but Not Abortion” and a law professor at Drexel University. “I think most people thought there would be creativity and determination that would still get a lot of people abortions once Roe v. Wade was overturned. But I don’t think anyone thought it would stay the same, let alone go up.”

Many state bans went into effect soon after June 2022, when the Supreme Court overturned Roe, which had guaranteed the right to abortion nationwide. Other states began putting in shield laws in the summer of 2023.

The analysis, published Tuesday by WeCount, a group overseen by academic researchers, breaks out the number of abortions provided under the new shield laws. On average, these laws are enabling 7,700 abortions a month in states with total abortion bans or six-week bans.

Telehealth abortions were a big driver of the increases. Other factors have also contributed. New clinics have opened, and a nationwide surge of publicity about the issue may have decreased stigma. Abortion rights groups have also helped people get access to abortion financially or logistically, enabling many women to travel out of state.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

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