Abortion rates decrease nationwide but increase in Maryland

This is not original reporting. All information was compiled from "Abortion rate rose in Maryland as it fell nationwide, institute says” in The Gazette.

According to the Census Bureau and a reproductive health research group, the Maryland abortion rate increased from the 1990s to 2000. At the same time, the nationwide abortion rate decreased.

Records from the Bureau and the Alan Guttmacher Institute show that in the state of Maryland, the abortion rate for every 1000 women of childbearing age increased approximately 10 percent. On the other hand, the nationwide rate fell about five percent.

John Nugent, Chief Executive Officer of Planned Parenthood of Maryland, said it is hard for him to accept the idea that the abortion rate has risen because abortions done in Maryland do not have to be recorded. Therefore, it is hard to get an accurate number of how many abortions actually occur. For example, when the Center for Disease Control (CDC) estimated the abortion rate for Maryland in the year 2000, their estimate was one-third the estimate of the Guttmacher Institute.

Some pro-life groups believe that the Maryland abortion laws are too lenient. According to Cookie Harris, assistant director of speakers at Defend Life in Maryland, women from out of state come to have abortions in Maryland because Maryland is one of the top five most liberal states when it comes to restrictions on abortion.

Stanley Henshaw from the Guttmacher Institute claims that Maryland's high abortion rate is from the large population of African Americans and the availability of abortion services. "A lot of the abortions are for low-income women, mainly black women,” Henshaw said.

Henshaw also believes that the nationwide abortion rate fell because of less accessibility to abortions. He says more women are also using contraceptives, and more teenagers are hesitant about becoming sexually active.