The abortion rate in the United States has hit a historic low, according to a new study from the Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive rights think tank with offices in the District of Columbia and New York City.
For the study, researchers analyzed a survey of U.S. facilities known or expected to have provided abortion services in 2013 or 2014, and compared findings with a similar survey conducted in 2011.
The study found approximately 926,200 abortions were performed in the United States in 2014, a 12 percent decrease from 2011. This marks the first time since 1975 that the number of U.S. abortions dropped below one million (958,700 in 2013 and 926,200 in 2014). Overall, the 2014 abortion rate was 14.6 abortions per 1,000 women ages 15 to 44, according to the study.
Researchers said the number of clinics providing abortions declined 6 percent between 2011 and 2014, and declines were steepest in the Midwest (22 percent) and the South (13 percent). Additionally, the study found early medication abortions comprised 31 percent of nonhospital abortions in 2014, compared to 24 percent in 2011.
Researchers said improvements in contraceptive use are likely contributing to the decline in the U.S. abortion rate, but abortion restrictions may also be a factor.
"The relationship between abortion access, as measured by the number of clinics, and abortion rates is not straightforward. Further research is needed to understand the decline in abortion incidence," they concluded.