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Abortion

Access To Abortion



Restrictions on abortion and lack of broad access to abortion services are unique for a legal medical procedure. The controversy over abortion and associated violence and harassment of patients and providers have resulted in a limited number of active abortion providers, especially in rural areas of the United States. In 1996 out of all U.S. counties only 14 percent had practicing providers, and the number appeared to be declining. Nearly one-third (32%) of women aged fifteen to forty-four were living in counties without local abortion services.



The majority of medical residents specializing in obstetrics and gynecology are not required to perform first-trimester induced abortions as part of their training. In 1995 only 12 percent of obstetrics and gynecology residency programs routinely offered abortion training, though nearly half (46%) reported provision of routine training in 1998 subsequent to new guidelines from the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education. Family practice residents have limited experience with either contraception or abortion. The approval in 2000 by the Food and Drug Administration of pharmaceutical agents to induce abortion medically rather than surgically could increase the number of providers. At the time of approval, however, both women and doctors indicated the importance of maintaining a range of abortion choices, since preferences are influenced by many practical, physiological, and psychological factors.

Bibliography

The Alan Guttmacher Institute. "Facts in Brief." In the Alan Guttmacher Institute [web site]. New York, 2000. Available from http://www.agi-usa.org/pubs/fb_induced_abortion.html; INTERNET.

Almeling, Rene, Laureen Tews, and Susan Dudley. "Abortion Training in U.S. Obstetrics and Gynecology Residency Programs, 1998." Family Planning Perspectives 32 (2000):268-320.

American Civil Liberties Union Freedom Network. "Reproductive Rights: Public Funding for Abortion." In the American Civil Liberties Union [web site]. New York, 2000. Available from http://www.aclu.org/library/funding.html; INTERNET.

The Boston Women's Health Book Collective. The New Our Bodies, Ourselves. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1992.

Henshaw, Stanley K. "Abortion Incidence and Services in the United States, 1995-1996."Family Planning Perspectives 30 (1998):263-270, 287.

Koonin, Lisa K., Lilo T. Strauss, Camaryn E. Chrisman, and WildaY. Parker. "Abortion Surveillance—United States, 1997." Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report 49 (SS11) (2000):1-44.

MacKay, H. Trent, and Andrea P. MacKay. "Abortion Training inObstetrics and Gynecology Residency Programs in the United States, 1991-1992."Family Planning Perspectives 27 (1995):112-115.

Steinauer, Jody E., Teresa DePineres, Anne M. Robert, John West-fall, and Philip Darney. "Training Family Practice Residents in Abortion and Other Reproductive Health Care: A Nationwide Survey." Family Planning Perspectives 29 (1997):222-227.

Trude Bennett

Dennie Nadeau

Additional topics

Social Issues ReferenceChild Development Reference - Vol 1Abortion - Who Has Abortions?, When Abortion Was Illegal, Judicial And Legislative Rulings, Access To Abortion