Roe v. Wade anniversary: Study says 'unsafe' abortions on rise

The authors of the recent study published in The Lancet interpret their findings in light of the impending 2015 deadline for the Millennium Development Goals for improving the lives of the poor. The study’s authors write, “[t]he substantial decline in the abortion rate observed earlier has stalled, and the proportion of all abortions that are unsafe has increased…. Measures to reduce the incidence of unintended pregnancy and unsafe abortion, including investments in family planning services and safe abortion care, are crucial steps toward achieving the Millennium Development Goals.”
 
However, Solter says one of the most important aspects recognized by the recent study is how difficult it is to collect data on abortions, and particularly unsafe abortions.  She says unsafe abortions tend to rank fourth on lists of leading factors in maternal mortality.  “But sometimes women’s deaths are miscategorized…. A mother may die of hemorrhaging, but that could really be the effect of an unsafe abortion,” she says.
 
She says the study’s data and findings could make an impact in developing countries.
 
“There is more and more interest now in maternal mortality…. When health ministries come to see what a huge risk unsafe abortions are, when they have hard proof and data that say it’s a major cause of mortality, it may make them more likely to address it,” Solter says.
 
Care for unsafe abortions can be costly.  “It actually impoverishes ministries of health. Some of the countries where [I] work, the annual budget is only a few dollars per person each year.  Dealing with someone who comes in hemorrhaging from an unsafe abortion is costly,” says Solter. “And its preventable,” she says, adding that it is not just a question of mortality but morbidity.
 
“Unsafe abortions can damage women for the rest of their lives,” she says.