Nearly Half Of All Abortions Performed In Unsafe Conditions Worldwide; U.S. Global Health Funding Cuts Could Further Increase Health Risks For Women, Experts Say
CNN: Nearly half of all abortions each year worldwide are unsafe, study says
“…A new study finds nearly half of all 55.7 million estimated abortions around the world each year between 2010 and 2014 were performed in an unsafe manner, putting women at risk for serious complications. The study, published Wednesday in the journal The Lancet, suggests that unsafe abortions are still a major health problem globally, especially in developing countries…” (Howard, 9/27).
Deutsche Welle: Half of all abortions carried out in unsafe conditions
“…Of the pregnancy terminations considered unsafe, 17.1 million abortions involved women taking pills alone to end their pregnancies or women who were supported by a trained helper but used methods that aren’t considered best practices by today’s medical standards. For another eight million abortions, women took so-called ‘backstreet measures;’ swallowing toxic substances or inserting wires to bring about a miscarriage…” (Bleiker, 9/28).
Reuters: WHO reports 25 million unsafe abortions a year; expert sees higher risk from U.S. cutbacks
“Nearly half of the estimated 56 million abortions performed worldwide every year are unsafe and women in poor countries face even higher risks due to U.S. funding cuts to family planning programs abroad, health experts said on Thursday…” (Nebehay, 9/27).
Thomson Reuters Foundation: Nearly half of abortions annually are unsafe: study
“…The study’s lead author Bela Ganatra from WHO said the laws and wealth of a country influenced the safety of abortions with the highest proportion of safe abortions in wealthier countries with less restrictive laws and well-developed health services…” (Kaddichi, 9/27).
TIME: Nearly Half of Abortions Around the World Are Unsafe
“…The report authors say that in order to address the high numbers of unsafe abortions around the world, more efforts are needed to ensure that unsafe methods are replaced with up-to-date methods, and more monitoring is needed to address gaps in care” (Sifferlin, 9/27).
The KFF Daily Global Health Policy Report summarized news and information on global health policy from hundreds of sources, from May 2009 through December 2020. All summaries are archived and available via search.