Women in County without Abortion Provider (%)
The absence of health care providers trained and available to provide abortion services can endanger women’s lives and health. For instance, abortion provider shortages may delay access to abortion procedures, which are safer the earlier in pregnancy they are performed.1 Across the country, 87% of U.S. counties had no abortion provider in 2005, and as noted in the national report card, 35% of women live in these underserved counties.2,3 Poor access to abortion services is a particular concern in rural communities. In 2005, 97% of non-metropolitan counties had no abortion provider.4
The Report Card benchmark is the goal that no women live in a county without an abortion provider.
| State | State Overall Data | State Grade | State Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 61.0 | F | 36 |
| Alaska | 23.0 | S- | 15 |
| Arizona | 16.0 | S- | 10 |
| Arkansas | 79.0 | F | 48 |
| California | 4.0 | S- | 3 |
| Colorado | 23.0 | S- | 15 |
| Connecticut | 10.0 | S- | 6 |
| Delaware | 18.0 | S- | 11 |
| District of Columbia | 0.0 | S | 1 |
| Florida | 20.0 | S- | 14 |
| Georgia | 62.0 | F | 37 |
| Hawaii | 0.0 | S | 1 |
| Idaho | 68.0 | F | 42 |
| Illinois | 34.0 | U | 20 |
| Indiana | 63.0 | F | 40 |
| Iowa | 56.0 | F | 31 |
| Kansas | 57.0 | F | 32 |
| Kentucky | 77.0 | F | 46 |
| Louisiana | 62.0 | F | 37 |
| Maine | 46.0 | F | 25 |
| Maryland | 19.0 | S- | 12 |
| Massachusetts | 7.0 | S- | 4 |
| Michigan | 33.0 | U | 19 |
| Minnesota | 62.0 | F | 37 |
| Mississippi | 91.0 | F | 50 |
| Missouri | 68.0 | F | 42 |
| Montana | 49.0 | F | 28 |
| Nebraska | 45.0 | F | 24 |
| Nevada | 12.0 | S- | 8 |
| New Hampshire | 19.0 | S- | 12 |
| New Jersey | 10.0 | S- | 6 |
| New Mexico | 47.0 | F | 26 |
| New York | 7.0 | S- | 4 |
| North Carolina | 48.0 | F | 27 |
| North Dakota | 75.0 | F | 45 |
| Ohio | 51.0 | F | 29 |
| Oklahoma | 57.0 | F | 32 |
| Oregon | 26.0 | U | 18 |
| Pennsylvania | 40.0 | U | 23 |
| Rhode Island | 39.0 | U | 22 |
| South Carolina | 72.0 | F | 44 |
| South Dakota | 78.0 | F | 47 |
| Tennessee | 59.0 | F | 35 |
| Texas | 35.0 | U | 21 |
| Utah | 55.0 | F | 30 |
| Vermont | 24.0 | S- | 17 |
| Virginia | 57.0 | F | 32 |
| Washington | 14.0 | S- | 9 |
| West Virginia | 84.0 | F | 49 |
| Wisconsin | 63.0 | F | 40 |
| Wyoming | 96.0 | F | 51 |
Data Source: Women in County without Abortion Provider (%), 2005.
EXPLANATION: This measure includes women ages 15-44 living in a county without an abortion provider (defined as a place where abortions are performed, e.g., a hospital, clinic, or physician's office). If an organization offers abortion services at more than one location, each service site is counted as a provider. The number of providers is different than the number of physicians who perform abortions, because one physician could be responsible for services in several facilities, and several physicians could perform abortions in a single setting. An abortion is defined as “any procedure, including menstrual extraction and menstrual regulation, intended to terminate a pregnancy.”
SOURCE: Jones RK, Zolna MR, Henshaw SK and Finer LB, Abortion in the United States:
Incidence and Access to Services, 2005, Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, 2008, 40(1):6–16., Table 3.
1 Association of Reproductive Health Professionals, “Abortion,” May 2008, available at: http://www.arhp.org/about-us/position-statements#1, accessed September 7, 2010.
2 Guttmacher Institute, “Facts on Induced Abortion in the United States,” May 2010, available at http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/fb_induced_abortion.html
3 Jones RK and others, “Abortion in the United States: incidence and access to services” in Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, 40(1), (2008), 6–16.
4 Physicians for Reproductive Choice and Health at the Guttmacher Institute, “An Overview of Abortion in the United States,” January 2008, available at http://www.guttmacher.org/presentations/abort_slides.pdf.
