National Abortion Rate Sees Huge Drop As More Women Are Using Birth Control

[ProSense]

National Abortion Rate Sees Huge Drop As More Women Are Using Birth Control

By Tara Culp-Ressler

Between 2008 and 2011, the national abortion rate declined by 13 percent, according to a new report from the Guttmacher Institute that will be published in a forthcoming issue of the Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health journal. That puts 2011′s abortion rate at 16.9 abortions per every 1,000 women of reproductive age, the lowest rate recorded since Roe v. Wade legalized the procedure in 1973.

The anti-choice community celebrated the news, claiming that an increasing number of women are choosing to carry their pregnancies to term...In fact, that perspective doesn’t actually align with the research in this area. Previous studies have found that sonograms don’t actually change women’s minds about having an abortion. And the Guttmacher’s new report concludes that the abortion rate isn’t declining because fewer women are choosing abortion in favor of giving birth to a child; rather, it’s because fewer women are getting pregnant in the first place.

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It’s also important to note that a drop in abortions shouldn’t necessarily be considered a positive thing, depending on the circumstances. As states have imposed an increasing number of harsh state-level restrictions on the procedure, many women — especially economically disadvantaged individuals and communities of color — have struggled to exercise their right to choose. Many of those women end up giving birth not because they didn’t want an abortion, but because they simply could not access one. For instance, harsh anti-abortion laws in Texas are projected to result in 22,000 women losing access to safe and legal abortion this year alone.

The Guttmacher Institute, which tracks state-level attacks on abortion, is well aware of this reality. Since the bulk of the wave of new abortion restrictions were enacted after 2011, the group’s most recent report didn’t find a clear connection between harsh state laws and declining abortion rates. But, according to the researchers, “this does not mean these laws are not problematic.”

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http://thinkprogress.org/health/2014/02/03/3238271/national-abortion-rate-drops/

[Sheepshank]

1. actually.....

This predictable, statistical outcome was....errrrrrr......predicted by Progressives.

It was predicted and told to the RW'ers....."if you want to cut down on abortions, stop the pregnancies in the first place". Their response? Spitting in the wind and trying to deny birth control.

It's what they do....with incredible predictability. Why they do it, is still a conundrum to me. The ONLY reason I can think of is the "keeping women barefoot and pregnant" mentality that seems too pervasive still.

[shenmue]

2. I posted another article about this on a religion discussion board

They don't know what to make of it yet.

"What - we can reduce abortions without attacking doctors? What gives?"

[justiceischeap]

3. Oh please, women are just killing the babies earlier

[JaneyVee]

4. Gee, who woulda thunk it?

[ProSense]

5. The RW do not

want people to know the relationship between birth control and fewer abortions.

Exclusive: Democratic senators to file amicus brief in Hobby Lobby birth control case
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024400252

[ProSense]

6. Sandra Fluke, Wendy Davis...The Fight For Reproductive Rights Is Inspiring Women To Run For Office

Sandra Fluke, Wendy Davis, And How The Fight For Reproductive Rights Is Inspiring Women To Run For Office

By Tara Culp-Ressler

Sandra Fluke, a women’s rights activist who rose to national prominence after testifying in favor of Obamacare’s birth control provision, is reportedly preparing a run for Congress. Although she hasn’t officially announced her bid for retiring Rep. Henry Waxman’s (D-CA) seat, the Washington Post reports that Fluke has filed for the endorsement of California’s Democratic party, which is the first step in the process.

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Fluke was catapulted into national headlines in 2012 after the right-wing radio host Rush Limbaugh’s infamous attacks against her. Limbaugh called the Georgetown law student a slut for supporting Obamacare’s contraceptive coverage requirement, suggesting that she was having so much sex that she couldn’t afford her own birth control. (Of course, that’s not actually how birth control works in practice.) Although other prominent conservatives furthered that line of attack, Fluke didn’t back down. She became an unapologetic spokeswoman for women’s reproductive health care, speaking out against the GOP’s “War on Women” at the Democratic National Convention and partnering with Planned Parenthood to promote health reform.

Right-wing pundits have transformed Fluke into somewhat of a symbol — she embodies the conservative assumption that birth control coverage has more to do with women’s promiscuity than their overall reproductive and economic freedom. But that hasn’t stopped her from seriously thinking about running, and likely won’t stop Democrats from rallying around her. She’s already won an unofficial endorsement from Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY).

In fact, Fluke’s decision to pursue a seat in Congress bears some similarities to the career of another women’s health champion who’s reviled by the right: Wendy Davis. The Texas state senator has become the public face of a groundswell of reproductive rights activism in the Lone Star State, and is currently making a high-profile run for governor. Although conservatives have

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http://thinkprogress.org/health/2014/02/04/3243681/sandra-flukes-congress-reproductive-rights/