Abortion: Notecards Essay

1) Who’s having abortions (age)? 50% of women obtaining abortions in the U.S. are younger than 25: Women aged 20-24 obtain 33% of all abortions; Teenagers obtain 17% and girls under 15 account for 1.2%. 2) Who’s having abortions (race)? While white women obtain 60% of all abortions, their abortion rate is well below that of minority women. Black women are more than 3 times as likely as white women to have an abortion, and Hispanic women are roughly 2 times as likely. See more: Defining research problem and setting objectives Essay 3) Who’s having abortions (marital status)? 66% of all abortions are performed on never-married women; Married women account for 18.4% of all abortions and divorced women obtain 9.4%. 4) Who’s having abortions (religion)? Women identifying themselves as Protestants obtain 43% of all abortions in the U.S.; Catholic women account for 27%, Jewish women account for 1.3%, and women with no religious affiliation obtain 23.7% of all abortions. 18% of all abortions are performed on women who identify themselves as â€Å"Born-again/Evangelical†. 5) Who’s having abortions (income)? Women with family incomes less than $15,000 obtain 28.7% of all abortions; Women with family incomes between $15,000 and $29,999 obtain 19.5%; Women with family incomes between $30,000 and $59,999 obtain 38.0%; Women with family incomes over $60,000 obtain 13.8%. 6) Why women have abortions 1% of all abortions occur because of rape or incest; 6% of abortions occur because of potential health problems regarding either the mother or child, and 93% of all abortions occur for social reasons (i.e. the child is unwanted or inconvenient). 7) Likelihood of abortion: An estimated 35% of all women will have at least 1 abortion by the time they are 45 years old. 47% of all abortions are performed on women who have had at least one previous abortion. 8) Abortion coverage: 67% of all abortion facilities offer at least some abortion services after the 12th week of pregnancy. 9 in 10 managed care plans routinely cover abortion or provide limited coverage. About 14% of all abortions in the United States are paid for with public funds, virtually all of which are state funds. 16 states (CA, CT, HI, ED, IL, MA , MD, MD, MN, MT, NJ, NM, NY, OR, VT, WA and WV) pay for abortions for some poor women. Facts about risks: 9) FUTURE ECTOPIC PREGNANCIES: * Studies point out that the risk of an ectopic or tubal (not in the uterus but in the tubes that lead to the uterus) ;pregnancy is 30% higher for women who have had one abortion, and up to four times higher for women with two or more abortions. * When a woman has an Ectopic pregnancy she has a 12% risk of dying in a future pregnancy. 10) PELVIC INFLAMMATORY DISEASE (PID): * 5% of women suffer PID following induced (or surgical) abortion. PID can lead to fever and infertility (not being able to get pregnant again). * There is a 23% higher risk of infection if you have an STD (Sexually Transmitted Disease). * 40% of the sexually active are suspected carriers of STDs. 11) BREAST CANCER: Reputable studies suggests that women who abort face a 50% increase in breast cancer. If the woman has a family history of breast cancer, this rate doubles with each successive abortion, if the woman is under 18 or over 30 years of age when the abortion takes place. 12) ABRUPTIO PLACENTA: Abruptio Placenta is a condition in pregnancy where the sac holding the baby (the placenta) tears away from the uterine lining. This can result in extreme and severe life-threatening bleeding. Women who have experienced abortion have a 600% increase in their risk for Abruptio Placenta in future pregnancies. 13) INFERTILITY: Infertility and sterility mean that a woman cannot get pregnant. Abortion causes sterility in 2-5% of the women who have an abortion. 14) PSYCHOLOGICAL/EMOTIONAL TRAUMA: 50% of women who have had abortions report experiencing emotional and psychological problems lasting for months or years. 15) Fact: Laws restricting teen access to abortion are coercive. Laws in 46 states and the District of Columbia allow mothers who are under 18 to place their children for adoption without involving their parents, but many of those same states require parental notification or consent before these young women can obtain abortions. 16) Fact: Each year, one million American teenagers become pregnant, and 78% of these pregnancies are unintended. Four in every five Americans begin having intercourse before age 20. Many of the youngest women in this group (70% of those age 13 or under) report having had sex forced on them. By the time they turn 20, about 40% of American women have been pregnant at least once. * Statistics: * Nearly 1 in 4 (22%) of pregnancies end in abortion * 50% of women now seeking abortion have had at least one previous abortion. * The U.S. abortion rate is among the highest of developed countries. * 51% of abortions are performed on women less than 25 years of age.