Study Examines Global Impact of Unsafe Abortions

A study published this week by The Lancet identifies ending the pandemic of unsafe abortion as an urgent public-health and global human-rights issue throughout the developing world. According to the report, 68,000 women – mostly in developing countries – die each year during unsafe abortions, and millions more are hospitalized from complications. Even in countries where abortion is legal, restrictive laws make it difficult for women to access safe abortion care. The report compares data from 13 countries and finds a clear association between legal access to abortion and improvement in sexual and reproductive health. The evidence clearly demonstrates that when abortion is made legal, safe, and easily accessible, women’s health rapidly improves.

Titled “Unsafe Abortion: The Preventable Pandemic,” the report is authored by NAF member David A. Grimes, MD, of the University of North Carolina Medical School; Janie Benson, DrPH and Bela Ganatra, MD, both of Ipas; and other noted experts in obstetrics-gynecology or international public health.

>Learn more about the barriers that restrict abortion access to women around the world.