Abortion rates down

Though abortion rates have decreased in the United States, rates among economically disadvantaged and minority women remain high due to a lack of education and easy access to birth control.
The U.S. abortion rate is the lowest it has been since the inception of Roe v. Wade, the act that made abortion a ‘fundamental right,’ in 1973, according to a September 2008 study by the Guttmacher Institute, a nonprofit organization that specializes in reproductive and sexual health.
The institute studied the abortion rates in the United States from 1974 to 2004 and found the largest drop was among teenaged abortions, which used to account for 33 percent of all abortions in 1974 and dropped to 17 percent in 2004.
Though there was a significant drop in teenaged abortion, the report found higher rates in older age groups and minority groups, which is caused by varying levels of access to contraceptives, Boston Medical Center Women’s Health Services Medical Director Laurent Delli-Bovi said.
‘It has to do with what populations are reached,’ she said. ‘There has been much more emphasis on teen pregnancy, an aggressive outreach, through education, about contraception, about STDs and awareness of AIDS.’
The increase in teen contraceptive use is due to an influx of safe sex and disease prevention information since the mid 1990s, Guttmacher Institute spokeswoman Rebecca Wind said.
‘Teens are getting the message that if they are going to become sexually active, contraceptives are the only way to protect themselves against STDs,’ she said.
The study also found women in their 20s or 30s are more likely to have an abortion if they already have children.
‘Single mothers have a concern for and a need to take care of their children, so they feel like they can’t provide for another child,’ Wind said.’
Financial instability greatly influences some women’s decision to have an abortion if they already have children, Boston University sociology professor Amy Moff Hudec said.
‘To try to add to an existing family that is already struggling is virtually impossible in some cases,’ she said. ‘It is difficult to choose to have an abortion, but it might be more difficult for that person to choose to take resources away from the children they already have.
‘It comes down to poverty rates and not only access to education, but access to resources and knowing that there’s a place where they can go,’ she said.
To combat unwanted pregnancy rates, Delli-Bovi said health insurance companies should cover contraceptive costs, which can be expensive and can prevent poorer women from practicing safe sex.
‘Many insurers don’t cover those things, but better insurance coverage, better insurance access, as well as education, can make a big difference for women of color and lower socioeconomic groups,’ she said.
College of Arts and Sciences senior Ammarah Iqbal said she was most surprised to find that women in their 20s and 30s are more likely to choose abortion than teenagers.
‘What I hear about abortion is about people in high school,’ she said. ‘I would think it is younger people because they are more open and start everything younger, so there would be more people in the generation that need abortions.’
Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Services senior Aliza Alter said sex education can prevent unwanted teenage pregnancy because the students know how to be safe.
‘We had very little sex education in middle school, we didn’t really get a devoted health class until senior year and by then a lot of people had already been affected,’ she said. ‘It’s about making resources available and making sure people know where to get them.’