For the third consecutive year, the number of abortions committed in Minnesota has fallen.
A recently released annual report from the Minnesota Department of Health revealed that 9,108 abortions occurred in the state in 2020 — an eight percent decrease from the 9,922 abortions that occurred the previous year. More than half of the reported abortions involved women in their 20s, and most occurred before 12 weeks. Abortions committed on minors dropped to 217 last year. The reason most women cited for seeking an abortion was “does not want children at this time.”
Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life (MCCL) credits the life-affirming work of pregnancy care centers and pro-life laws, including the Women’s Right to Know Act, as being “instrumental” in the declining number of abortions in the state. The law, enacted in 2003, requires licensed physicians to provide pregnant women with information about abortion risks, the child’s gestational age, and resources available to the mother and child a minimum of 24 hours prior to their abortion.
“Many pregnant women have faced difficult situations, especially during the last year. Yet more and more have met those challenges without the tragedy of abortion,” MCCL Executive Director Scott Fischbach said in a statement. “The work of pregnancy care centers, which compassionately offer alternatives to abortion, has been instrumental. And pro-life laws in Minnesota, such as Woman’s Right to Know and Positive Alternatives, continue to empower women and save lives. Today’s report is very positive news for mothers and children.”
The new numbers indicate the largest single-year drop since at least 1980, though some abortion providers believe the decline may not be as dramatic as indicated in the report. Whole Woman’s Health, typically the state’s second largest abortion provider, recently relocated from Bloomington to Minneapolis, which the chief executive claims may have disrupted state reporting. The report shows a decline of nearly 2,000 abortions committed by Whole Woman’s Health.
While abortions have fallen in Minnesota overall, the number of abortions committed by Planned Parenthood in the state has substantially increased. Planned Parenthood committed 35% of abortions in Minnesota a decade ago. In 2019, they committed 65% of all abortions, and that number jumped to 82% in 2020. According to MCCL, Planned Parenthood has grown its abortion total for nine straight years, with a 108% jump since 2011. In the meantime, abortions committed at other facilities have fallen 78% over the same period.
READ: Minnesota abortion centers aren’t licensed or inspected – like those in nearly half the U.S.
Despite the dispute over the potentially skewed numbers coming out of Whole Woman’s Health, the number of abortions in the state has been declining in the decades since Minnesota enacted its abortion reporting law in 1998, representing a major pro-life victory in the state. Moreover, abortions have dropped more than 52% since 1980, when abortion totals reached 19,028 in the state.
Tragically, many abortionists have been pushing the abortion pill regimen during the pandemic. The report indicates that abortion pills were distributed a record high number of 4,964 times, a 34% increase which accounts for more than half of the overall total.
The abortion pill regimen, also called a chemical abortion, is a two-step process that involves taking two drugs over the course of several days. The first drug is mifepristone, which kills the preborn child by blocking progesterone, depriving the baby of nutrients. The second drug is misoprostol, which causes strong contractions, causing the mother to expel her dead child. The two drugs can be taken several days apart. In that time frame, some mothers may change their mind. After taking the first pill in the series, women can potentially reverse the abortion by receiving progesterone from a physician as soon as possible.
Moreover, MCCL notes that chemical abortions are risky for women, especially when, as in mail-order abortions, they receive no in-person medical examination beforehand. A Finnish study found that chemical abortions led to “adverse events” in 20% of cases — almost four times the rate of immediate complications as surgical abortions. “Especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, abortion supporters have sought to make chemical abortions more widespread, even at the expense of women’s safety,” Fischbach said. “Both women and unborn children deserve better.”
More information about the abortion pill reversal process can be found at the Abortion Pill Rescue Network website, or by calling the hotline at 855-209-4848.
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