Hunter
12/28/23
The number of abortions performed in Iowa continue to trend upward.
The Des Moines Register reports there were 4,062 abortions in Iowa in 2022, according to data from the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services. That’s an 8% increase compared to 2021, when 3,761 abortions were performed in the state.
The state has seen a steady increase in the number of terminated pregnancies over the last five years; however, it is nowhere near mid 2000’s totals when they numbered over 6000 per year.
Iowa mirrors national trends; data from the Guttmacher Institute showed a steady increase in abortions starting in 2015 after declining over the past several decades.
Iowa’s 2022 increase could be attributed to patients coming from states where abortion has been banned. The Charles Lozier Institute, an anti-abortion advocacy group, estimates that nearly 1 in 5 abortions were performed on patients from another state.
Planned Parenthood North Central States CEO Ruth Richardson says the steady increase can be attributed to Iowa’s decision to withdraw from a federal family planning program for which Planned Parenthood was the major provider.
The Register reports that since its 2017 creation, the state-run program has served 83% fewer Iowans and has paid for fewer family planning services, like birth control.
Abortion is currently legal in Iowa up to 20 weeks of pregnancy; however, the state Supreme Court is set to hear arguments over a blocked law passed this year that would reduce it to just six weeks.