Statewide Iowa (RI) — A report finds the number of abortions performed in Iowa dropped last year, the first full year of the state’s law banning abortions at around six weeks of pregnancy, with some exceptions.
The report from the Guttmacher Institute, which supports abortion rights, shows there were just over 3,000 clinician-provided abortions in Iowa last year, a 22-percent decrease from the year before.
Isaac Maddow-Zimet, a data scientist with the institute, says the drop doesn’t mean Iowans aren’t accessing abortions elsewhere.
He says the data indicate many Iowans are crossing state lines to obtain abortions.
He says most Iowans are going to neighboring states like Illinois, Minnesota and Nebraska for abortions.
KIWA Staff Photo
