Despite Overturn Of Roe, Surgical Abortions Increase Nationwide

On June 24, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court of the United States released its decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. In Dobbs, the Court overturned its disastrous 1973 decision in Roe v. Wade that created an abortion-on-demand regime throughout the United States. Now, the elected branches of government are free to make abortion policy without interference from federal courts.

Following the Court’s decision in Dobbs, legislatures in pro-life states across the nation have taken steps to curtail or dramatically reduce the availability of abortion. However, to the surprise and deep sadness of pro-life Americans, the overall number of surgical abortions in the United States actually increased in the 12-month period after the Dobbs decision was handed down.

According to the pro-abortion Society of Family Planning, “in states with total or six-week abortion bans, [surgical] abortions decreased by nearly 115,000. States where abortion remained legal beyond six weeks saw a cumulative increase of nearly 117,000 [surgical] abortions in the 12 months following the Dobbs ruling.” The abortion industry has responded to Dobbs by expanding abortion services in states where abortion remains fully legal.

Furthermore, employers like Amazon, Apple, Disney, Starbucks, Target, and the United States Armed Forces have encouraged female employees in pro-life states to choose abortion by providing reimbursement for abortion-related out-of-state travel. (Think about it. Isn’t it cheaper for these employers to pay for abortion-related costs than it is to pay for childbirth and offer paid maternity leave?) Some pro-choice Americans have bought the lie that women cannot advance in their careers unless they remain childless. This is the furthest thing from the truth. Just look at U.S. Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett, who has seven children. Justice Barrett is sitting on the highest court in our country. Clearly, having children has not held back her career.

To drive down the number of abortions in the United States, the pro-life movement must work on multiple fronts. We must continue advocating for pro-life laws in state legislatures and in Congress, and we must continue defending pro-life laws in court. But we must also continue working to win the hearts and minds of our neighbors so that they will not want to seek abortions in the first place.

This article was originally published by New York Family Research Foundation.