Across the country, politicians are using lies about abortion to pass laws that make it more difficult or even impossible for women to access abortion care.
Stop the Lies. Get the Facts.
Anti-abortion politicians lie about abortion safety to pass laws that restrict access and close down trusted health care clinics.
Abortion is one of the safest medical procedures in the United States.
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, American Medical Association, American Academy of Family Physicians, American Osteopathic Association, and American Academy of Pediatrics all agree: “Abortion is one of the safest medical procedures performed in the United States.”
Abortion has a 99 percent safety record, according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and Planned Parenthood.
Anti-abortion politicians lie about the physical health impacts of abortion care. They even claim that abortion causes breast cancer, and go so far as to pass laws that force doctors to repeat this lie to their patients.
There is no causal link between abortion care and breast cancer.
The American Cancer Society has stated that the scientific evidence does not support the claim that abortion care raises the risk of breast cancer or any other type of cancer.
Similarly, the U.S. National Cancer Institute has concluded that “having an abortion or miscarriage does not increase a woman’s subsequent risk of developing breast cancer.”
Anti-abortion politicians lie about women’s feelings and mental health after abortion. They even require doctors to repeat these lies to their patients by telling them that abortion care has negative mental health outcomes.
The “overwhelming majority” of women feel their abortion was the right decision for them.
The American Psychological Association issued a comprehensive report debunking the claim that abortion is linked to mental health problems.
The Guttmacher Institute summarized the medical evidence debunking this claim, stating, “Despite the overwhelming consensus in the legitimate scientific community that there is no causal link between abortion and mental health disorders, antiabortion activists have long gotten considerable traction in state legislatures and even the courts with their spurious scientific case.”
A large nationwide study found that over 95 percent of women who had an abortion felt it was the right decision, both immediately afterward and three years later.
Anti-abortion politicians lie about women who decide on abortion care, saying that they are incapable of making a private medical decision without state intervention.
Most women have already made their decision before going to an abortion provider, and the majority of women who have an abortion already have children and cite caretaking as one of the reasons they decided to end their pregnancy.
A 2012 study found that 87 percent of women reported having “high confidence” in their decision to have an abortion before receiving counseling.
In a nationally representative survey of abortion patients conducted in 2008, 92 percent of women reported they had made up their mind to have an abortion prior to making an appointment.
According to data from the Guttmacher Institute, 61 percent of women who choose abortion already have at least one child and point to their responsibilities to their families as a reason for deciding to have an abortion.
Anti-abortion politicians lie and say they support Targeted Regulation of Abortion Providers (TRAP laws) to protect women’s health.
TRAP laws single out abortion clinics and providers for onerous, medically unnecessary requirements that comparable medical facilities and health care providers are not subject to. While these restrictions are often passed under the guise of “patient safety,” the truth is they force clinics to close and drive experienced providers out of practice, making it harder for women to access care and undermining women’s health.
According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, American Medical Association, American Academy of Family Physicians and American Osteopathic Association, “[Ambulatory Surgical Center] and privileges requirements do nothing to protect the health and safety of women and are incongruous with modern medical practice. Women’s access to high-quality, evidence-based abortion care should not be limited by laws enacted under the guise of patient safety but that, in fact, harm women’s health.”
