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3w ago

U.S. Abortions Hit 1.14 Million in 2024 as Telehealth and Shield Laws Expand Access

Telehealth abortions now represent one-fourth of U.S. procedures, thanks to shield laws sustaining care despite state bans

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Pro-life demonstrators protest outside of the Supreme Court during a rally, March 26, 2024, in Washington. Two years after a leaked draft of a U.S. Supreme Court opinion singled that the nation's abortion landscape was about to shift dramatically, the issue is still consuming the nation's courts, legislatures and political campaigns and changing the course of lives. (Jose Luis Magana AP)
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Overview

  • Abortion providers performed 1.14 million procedures in 2024, marking an 8% rise from 2023 and the highest figure tracked since 2022.
  • The share of abortions conducted via telehealth jumped from 19% in December 2023 to 25% by December 2024, with over 70,000 remote procedures in the final quarter.
  • State shield laws passed in at least eight jurisdictions facilitated nearly half of all telehealth abortions by protecting out-of-state providers from prosecution.
  • In states enforcing total bans, in-person abortions fell to an average of just 30 per month last year, highlighting the effect of restrictive laws.
  • Legal challenges to abortion pills include three state lawsuits seeking to restrict telehealth prescriptions of mifepristone and a federal review ordered by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.