Restrictions or outright bans on abortion implemented in some US states can have unexpected consequences like reduced access to contraceptives and higher infant mortality rates, two studies published this week warned. The two studies come as the United States marks the second anniversary of the Supreme Court's historic decision to overturn constitutional protections on abortion, leaving each state to decide on the hotly contested issue. The first study, published Wednesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association ( JAMA ), shows that in states where abortion is illegal, there is a corresponding significant drop in the number of birth-control and morning-after pills dispensed by pharmacies.
Birth-control pills, taken once a day, are the most widely used method of hormonal contraception in the country. The morning-after pill is an emergency contraceptive (EC), taken shortly after unprotected sex or when another method has failed. For the study, researchers analyzed more than 143 million prescriptions written between March 2021 and October 2023.
They say the drop may be explained by the closing of family planning clinics where abortions were performed, and which also provided other reproductive health services, such as prescribing oral contraceptive pills (OCPs). There is also confusion in some states as to whether morning-after pills remain legal, or are considered to be a method of abortion, the study said. It noted that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) rece.
