More Evidence of Abortion Declines Among America's Youth.(Statistical data)

One of the most heartening trends for pro-lifers has been the steady, consistent decline in the number of abortions being performed in the United States. While the number of abortions increased steadily throughout the 1970s and 1980s, the numbers have declined almost every year since 1990.

Overall, among states consistently reporting data, the number of abortions has declined by an impressive 20% between 1990 and 2003.

Although the decline in the overall incidence of abortion during the 1990s and the early part of this decade has been reported, scant attention has been paid to the incidence of abortion among minors, which has been declining at an even faster rate. According to the 37 states reporting minor abortion data to the Centers for Disease Control in both 1990 and 2003, the number of abortions performed on minors fell by almost 40%.

Data from the Alan Guttmacher InstitutePlanned Parenthood's think-tanktells a similar story. Overall, it appears that teenagers today are about 40% less likely to have abortions as their predecessors were 15 years ago, a stunning decline which has received much less fanfare that it ought to have.

What is the cause for this dramatic decline? There are many possible reasons. Numerous studies, including one from the Centers for Disease Control, indicate that young people are becoming more likely to abstain from sex or to delay sexual activity until later in life. This has undoubtedly played a role in the abortion decline among teens.

However, another key factor that cannot be overlooked is the impact of pro-life legislation at the state level. During the 1990s, the number of states with parental involvement laws increased from 20 to 32.

Parental involvement laws are especially relevant to the teen abortion decline. Such laws require minors seeking abortions to either notify a parent (or parents) or receive permission from their parents before having an abortion, or obtain a judicial bypass.