CDC Reports Lowest Abortion Totals since 1978

By Randall K. O'Bannon. Ph.D.
NRL-ETF Director of Education and Research

Continuing a downward trend evident throughout the last decade, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reported last month that the number of abortions performed in the United States dropped 3% from 1996 to 1997. The lowest figure for abortions reported since 1978, it means that almost 39,000 fewer babies died by abortion in 1997 than died in 1996.

Almost as significant, and perhaps more so in the long term, the ratio of abortions to live births also declined. This strongly suggests that a greater proportion of pregnant women are choosing life for their unborn children. (See page 27.)

According to the CDC, there were 1,184,758 abortions performed in the U.S. in 1997. This is nearly a quarter of a million (244,819) fewer abortions than the CDC recorded in 1990, the year it recorded its highest figure. Since 1990, the annual number of abortions reported to the CDC has dropped by over 17%.

To be sure, because the CDC relies on state health departments for its statistics rather than surveying abortion clinics directly, as the Alan Guttmacher Institute (AGI) does, its figures are generally lower than AGI's - - a fact the CDC freely admits. For example, while the CDC recorded 1,221,585 abortions for 1996, AGI surveys indicated 1,365,730 for that same year.

Nevertheless, because changes in CDC and AGI figures generally parallel one another, both sources provide useful information about abortion trends and statistics. In addition, unlike AGI, the CDC collects and publishes its data every year. What do we know from the latest numbers?

The abortion rate - - the number of abortions per 1,000 women of reproductive age (ages 15-44) - - stayed the same from 1996 to 1997: 20 abortions per thousand. But the abortion ratio, the number of abortions for every 1,000 live births, dropped. There were 305 abortions for every 1,000 live births - - the lowest ratio recorded since 1975.

Why bother with both figures? Because together they offer intriguing suggestions about the factors that are behind the decline in deaths by abortion.

On the one hand, with the aging of the baby boom generation and the subsequent shrinkage of the population of women of reproductive age, the number of abortions would be expected to decline simply because there were fewer women capable of getting pregnant. And, in fact, the impact of the population shrinkage is reflected in the fact that even while the absolute number of abortions dropped, the abortion rate (again, we mean the number of abortions per 1,000 women of reproductive age) remained stable.

But, on the other hand, the drop in the abortion ratio indicates that the decline is due to much more than the fact that there are simply fewer reproductive-aged women or even fewer pregnant women. (To repeat, the abortion ratio is the number of abortions per 1,000 live births.) As shown on page 26, of those women who do become pregnant, a decreasing proportion are aborting their babies. Thus the CDC statistics tell us a greater proportion of pregnant women are choosing life for their unborn children now than at any time since 1975!

Looking back, it isn't hard to see why more pregnant women are deciding to carry their babies. Technology such as sonograms offers pictures of the developing baby that make it impossible for anyone to deny the humanity of the unborn child. (See Today's News & Views for January 13-14 and 17-18 at www.nrlc.org.) Many states have passed women's right to know, waiting period, and parental involvement laws. As a result, women are better informed and teens have greater protection from the exploitive abortion industry.

In addition, right to life educational literature and advertisements have challenged many pro-abortion myths and helped change countless hearts and minds. Dedicated volunteers at local crisis pregnancy centers have helped thousands of women find realistic and positive alternatives to abortion.

The most critical thing the CDC statistics tell us is that the time, money, and prayers you have spent on behalf of unborn children have not been for naught. Keep up the good work until every child is welcomed in life and protected in law!