Abortion has remained relatively common in the United States despite bans and deep restrictions in most Republican-controlled states, leaving the legal and political fights over its future far from over. Since the US Supreme Court’s ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, two and a half years ago, the policies and their impact have been in flux.
According to recent data, there are slightly more monthly abortions across the country than there were in the months leading up to the June 2022 ruling, even as the number in states with bans has dropped to nearly zero. “Abortion bans don’t actually prevent abortions from happening,” said Ushma Upadhyay, a public health social scientist. “They do change care.”
For women in some states, there are obstacles to getting abortions, and advocates say that low-income, minority, and immigrant women are least likely to be able to access them when they need them. For those living in states with bans, accessing abortions has become more challenging, leading to the need for travel or abortion pills.
As a result, abortion pills have become a bigger part of the equation, involved in about half of all abortions before Dobbs, and now closer to two-thirds. Additionally, telehealth has become increasingly common, with about 1 in 10 abortions resulting from telehealth prescriptions to patients in states where abortion is banned.
The legal questions surrounding abortion pills are now central to the battles over access. Texas has sued a New York doctor for prescribing pills to a Texas woman via telemedicine, while Idaho, Kansas, and Missouri are pushing to roll back federal approvals and treat them as “controlled dangerous substances.”
The number of clinics that have closed or halted abortions in states with bans has risen, but a network of efforts to connect women seeking abortions with legal facilities has strengthened. Travel for abortion, including to neighboring states, has increased, with a recent study finding that more than twice as many Texas residents obtained abortions in New Mexico as New Mexico residents did.
Despite the challenges, abortion funds, which have received increased donations in response to the ruling, have helped pay for many abortion-seekers’ costs. However, some funds have had to cap how much they can give. The abortion map has been in flux, with the actions of lawmakers and courts keeping changing where it’s legal and under what conditions.
In Florida, the ban that took effect in May has been a game-changer, with about 30% fewer abortions in May compared to the average for the first three months of the year, and 35% fewer in June. Other states, such as Illinois, Kansas, and New Mexico, have seen clinics open or expand, while hospitals that have always provided some abortions have begun advertising them, resulting in a slight increase in publicly identifiable abortion providers from 799 in May 2022 to 792 in November 2024.
The Supreme Court has also declined to take up a case involving the Biden administration’s policy that requires hospitals to offer abortions when necessary to prevent organ loss, hemorrhage, or deadly infections, even in states with bans. Over 100 pregnant women have been turned away or left unstable in emergency rooms since 2022, with the most common complaints involving miscarriages and hemorrhages.
According to data, more than 60% of voters support making abortion legal in all or most cases, a slight uptick from 2020, despite Republicans’ control of the White House and both houses of Congress. The future of abortion remains uncertain, and the legal and political fights over its future are far from over.
