The Impact of Abortion Restrictions
Abortion restrictions and bans pose a threat to the health of all pregnant people by denying and delaying care, including medically necessary care for people with pregnancy complications.6,7 Research has shown that restrictions on abortion access cause harm to people’s physical and mental health as well as their social and economic well-being.8
Across the U.S., bans enacted or triggered by many states since the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization Supreme Court case (“Dobbs”) are contributing to preventable illness and death from conditions including pregnancy loss (i.e., miscarriage), ectopic pregnancy, or fetal demise.9,10,11 This is largely due to “provider reluctance or refusal to provide care because of abortion restrictions, or limitations from institutions, pharmacies, or regional practice."9,13
Because care for pregnancy loss is equivalent to abortion in terms of protocols, medications, and procedures,14,15,16 state laws limiting abortion impact routine physician practice. Studies show that since the Dobbs decision, over one-third of obstetricians-gynecologists (ob-gyns) nationally and up to 55% in abortion ban states report a decline in their ability to practice medicine in alignment with standards of care.17,18,19, 20 A quarter of ob-gyns report constraints on their ability to manage miscarriages and other pregnancy-related emergencies.19 In one study of physicians in abortion ban states, 60% indicated they considered leaving their state to practice elsewhere,21 while other research found that in Idaho, 35% of obstetrics providers left the state between 2022 and 2024.20,22,23
Physicians also express concerns about the impact of abortion restrictions on their patients. Half of providers in abortion ban states reported patients in their practice have not able to obtain the abortions they sought, compared to 24% of providers in the U.S. overall.24 As of early 2024, over two thirds of ob-gyns nationally and 70% in states with abortion bans or gestational limits on abortion believed that racial and ethnic inequities in maternal health had worsened since the decision.17 These physician perceptions align with data: since the Dobbs decision, restrictive abortion policies have exacerbated maternal health disparities among women of color, particularly Black women, by increasing the risks of maternal morbidity and mortality, worsening access to prenatal and emergency care, and amplifying provider shortages and systemic inequities.25,26 Maternity care deserts (predominantly rural geographic areas where little or no obstetric care exists) have expanded in the years post-Dobbs.27