Published 4 hours ago • loading... • Updated 4 hours ago

Abortion bans led to higher preterm birth rates among Black women, study finds

In this month's American Journal of Public Health, researchers found Black women in a dozen states with abortion bans had preterm birth rates 2.10% higher than expected.
Researchers point to gaps in prenatal care and preexisting disparities as lead author Maeve Wallace and colleagues wrote that some births followed women unable to access wanted abortions, while the CDC notes lack of timely prenatal care raises preterm risk.
Following Dobbs, total monthly birth rates increased 2%, with Black women up 3.50% and Medicaid enrollees up 3% overall and 4.20% among Black Medicaid enrollees.
Preterm births are defined as before 37 weeks, and births before 32 weeks have higher rates of death, disability and developmental problems.
The study excluded Indiana, North Dakota, and Wisconsin due to timing and legal confusion, and it builds on a 2024 study by health economists that linked bans to 2.3% more births and distance effects.

Insights by Ground AI

13 Articles

Startling research reveals staggering hidden cost of red state abortion bans

Black women living in states with abortion bans were more likely to have preterm babies, compared with what would be expected in the absence of those bans, according to a study published in this month’s issue of the American Journal of Public Health.A lack of timely prenatal care can increase the ri...

2 days ago·United States

Read Full Article