Abortion in the U.S. Dashboard

In 2021, the median costs for people paying out of pocket in the first trimester were $568 for a medication abortion and $625 for a procedural abortion. The Federal Reserve estimates that nationally about one-third of people do not have $400 on hand for unexpected expenses. For low-income people, who are more likely to need abortion care, these costs are often unaffordable.

In the 17 states without explicit laws prohibiting or protecting abortions, we present a number of indicators to assess abortion access, including abortion restrictions, the number of clinics and women of reproductive age per clinic, as well as State Supreme Court rulings interpreting the right to abortion in that state.

This brief reviews the status of state actions to strengthen and guarantee abortion access to their residents, as well as to prepare for the likely increase in demand for abortion services in those states should the high court overturn the constitutional right to abortion established by Roe v. Wade.

This issue brief provides background on the legal challenges to the Mississippi law in the context of the Supreme Court abortion precedents, addresses the intersections with the litigation that has arisen from S.B. 8, the Texas 6-week abortion ban, and explains the potential outcomes and how they could impact access to abortion around the country.

Six states, Arizona, Arkansas, Missouri, Louisiana, Texas, and West Virginia, have passed laws specifically banning telehealth for abortion provision. In addition,14 other states have enacted laws that require the clinician providing a medication abortion to be physically present during the procedure, effectively prohibiting the use of telehealth to dispense medication for abortion remotely.

This factsheet provides an overview of medication abortion, with a focus on federal and state regulations pertaining to its provision and coverage, and the role of the drug in self-managed abortions.

This brief outlines the intersection of federal policy regarding dispensing medication abortion with state laws regulating the provision of abortion services and mifepristone dispensing via telehealth and considers the implications of the recent FDA change in different states.

Several states have enacted private plan restrictions and have also banned abortion coverage from ACA Marketplace plans. Currently, there are 12 states that restrict abortion coverage in private plans and X that ban coverage in any Marketplace plans.

This Policy Watch takes a look at employers ability to access abortion information when their health plan covers abortion services. With some states criminalizing entities who assist in abortions, employers and providers face legal jeopardy and existing privacy laws such as HIPAA (the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) may be limited in their privacy protections.

This Policy Watch gives an overview of employers offering to cover travel expenses for workers who need to go out of state for an abortion in the context of increasing restrictions on abortion around the country. We discuss who is offering these benefits, the implications for workers, and some of the legal and political concerns for employers.

This policy watch examines the intersection of Medicaid coverage policies with state actions to ban abortion.

This brief details the federal programs that are affected by the Hyde Amendment and laws and regulations that have a similar goal, provides estimates on the share of women insured by Medicaid affected by the law, reviews the impact of the law on their access to abortion services, and discusses the potential effect if the law were to be repealed.

This page tracks recent state actions to extend Medicaid postpartum coverage, including approved and pending 1115 waivers, legislation that will require the state to seek federal approval through a (State Plan Amendment) SPA or 1115 waiver, submitted and approved SPAs, and coverage financed solely with state funds.

This brief examines how policies aimed at limiting abortion may have negative consequences on people experiencing pregnancy loss.

This report highlights key findings from the 2020 KFF National Physician Survey on Reproductive Health that asked a nationally representative sample of OBGYNs practicing in the United States about a wide range of issues, including their provision of contraception, abortion, and STI care.

Share of abortions by age, gestational age and method type.

State gestational limits, waiting periods & ultrasound requirements, insurance coverage, and medication abortion restrictions.

Most (61%) of the public says they want their state to guarantee access to abortion, while a quarter (25%) want their states to ban it. About half (51%) of those living in states that have or are anticipated to ban abortion soon say they want their states to protect access to abortion, compared to a third (32%) that want their state to ban it.

This poll analyses the general public’s understanding of abortion access and reproductive health following a leaked draft of the U.S Supreme Court opinion on Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Center. The poll also looks at how the aftermath of the leaked opinion may affect voting in the upcoming midterm election. This KFF poll also finds that there are significant knowledge gaps on the prevalence and the overall safety of abortions.