Abortion decline failing as rate of unintended pregnancies increases.

State and local health directors, and public health policy makers, should take careful note of today's Guttmacher Institute report. “The new data confirm that the decline in the U.S. abortion rate has stopped almost completely,� says Dr. Sharon L. Camp, Guttmacher president and CEO. “This troubling development is no surprise, given that unintended pregnancy rates have come to a near-standstill as well, and have actually worsened dramatically for low-income women.�
“These trends are alarming, and should be a wake-up call to policymakers at the federal and state levels to do more to help women, especially those at greatest risk, avoid unwanted pregnancies,� argues Dr. Camp. “There is an urgent need to strengthen evidence-based policies that have been proven to reduce unintended pregnancy and the need for abortion.