Is the anti-abortion movement really pro-life? Not if you count the mothers’ lives.
A recent report from
Gender Equity Policy Institute (GEPI) looked at the effect of abortion bans on maternal
mortality in the USA. It looked at CDC data for the year 2023.
Thirteen of the 50 US
states enforced abortion bans (it is now 16). The overall rate of maternal
mortality was 18.6/100,000 live births. California which has contraception and
abortion enshrined in the state constitution has the lowest mortality rate in
the country at 9.5. Texas has the highest rate at 27.7. On average, a mother’s
chance of dying during pregnancy, childbirth or shortly after childbirth, is
nearly twice as high in a state with an abortion ban. For some segments of the
population it’s much more.
In Canada, for
comparison, where abortion is legal, the mortality rate has been stable at 11.
It’s not just the state
or the people living in them; the abortion bans strongly affect the outcome. In
the first year after Texas enacted an abortion ban the maternal mortality rose
56%.
It is not just the
availability of abortion that results in the lower mortality rate in these
states. It’s the overall support for women, mothers and their babies. So if you
really want to be pro-life, there is a lot more to be done to support people at
all stages of their lives than just banning abortion.
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