Abortions in the USA: A Statistical Outlook

Almost half the pregnancies in the USA are unintended and about 40% of these unintended pregnancies are aborted every year, this is not accounting miscarriages. The modern American populace has many reasons to justify its actions, like, inability to provide for the kid in the current economy, unplanned pregnancy, family problems, hardships of being a single parent, careers etc.

Statistics show that there are almost 1.21 million abortions in America every year. However, it is also true that there has been a steady decrease in the number of abortions in the US. The number of women aged between the ages of 15 to 44 having abortions stands at 2%. Of all the women having abortions, about 47% of them have had prior abortions. It is said that at this rate, one in three women would have had at least one abortion by the time they reach 45 years of age. USA also has the highest rate of abortions in the western world- a staggering 19.4 for every 1000 women. A majority of the abortions, about 88%, take place during the fifth week of pregnancy. Statistically, the majority of abortions are performed on blacks, about 3%, closely followed by Whites (34%), Hispanics account to 22% of all abortions and the rest is by the others. Going by the religion, Protestants are the highest, with 42% opting for abortions, followed by Christians at 27%, non believers at 24% and the rest by others.

On the bright side...

There has been a shift in the way people respond to abortions since 2009, with about 51% of them choosing pro life over pro choice. Abortion rate has decreased by 8 percent from 2000 to 2008 but this also does not cast a uniform picture in all segments. The rate of abortion has risen to about 18 percent in poor women and decreased to 28 percent in higher income women. This can also be attributed to the inverse role of unintended pregnancies in both segments. Even today, although a majority of the people are against abortion, it remains a highly debated topic. The question that needs to be put out is when should abortion be legally permitted and when shouldn't they. The answer to this question itself might help countries deal with the problem of abortion.