Characteristics of women who would be affected by Georgia's ban on later abortions

A law to ban abortions after 20 weeks gestation with few exceptions may go into effect in Georgia in 2013. Little is known about the women who would be affected by this ban. We obtained redacted medical record and intake data on women receiving abortions for pregnancies greater than 20 weeks gestation from three of the four free-standing abortion facilities in Georgia that provided that care in December 2012. Women's mean age was 24 years. Most (>85%) came from households making less than the median U.S. household income ($50K), with almost two-thirds making $25K or less. More than half of the women were Black and about one-fourth were White. Just under half were already caring for one or more children. Fewer than one in seven were seeking abortion because of fetal anomaly. The two most common factors contributing to seeking later abortion care were difficulty raising the money to pay for the procedure and not realizing they were pregnant. Women came from across the South, as well as from the Northeast and Midwest, with only 40% from Georgia. The ban will primarily affect women who discovered pregnancy later and who were delayed by a lack of resources to pay for the abortion, as well as women seeking abortion for fetal development issues. The ban would likely affect low-income and Black women, many who are raising other children. Importantly, the ban would affect women from all over the South as well as from the Northeast and Midwest.