Abortion surveillance--United States, 1998.

PROBLEM/CONDITION: In 1969, CDC began abortion surveillance to document the number and characteristics of women obtaining legal induced abortions, to monitor unintended pregnancy, and to assist efforts to identify and reduce preventable causes of morbidity and mortality associated with abortions. REPORTING PERIOD COVERED: This report summarizes and reviews information reported to CDC regarding legal induced abortions obtained in the United States in 1998. DESCRIPTION OF SYSTEM: For each year since 1969, CDC has compiled abortion data by occurrence. From 1973 to 1997, data were received from or estimated for 52 reporting areas in the United States: 50 states, the District of Columbia, and New York City. In 1998, CDC compiled abortion data from only 48 reporting areas; Alaska, California, New Hampshire, and Oklahoma did not report. RESULTS: In 1998, 884,273 legal induced abortions were reported to CDC, representing a 2% decrease from the 900,171 legal induced abortions reported by the same 48 reporting areas for 1997. The abortion ratio, defined as the number of abortions per 1,000 live births, was 264, compared with 274 in 1997 (for the same 48 areas); the abortion rate for these 48 areas was 17 per 1,000 women aged 15-44 years for both 1997 and 1998. The availability of information about characteristics of women who obtained an abortion in 1998 varied by state and by the number of states reporting each characteristic. The total number of legal induced abortions by state is reported by state of residence and state of occurrence; characteristics of women obtaining abortions in 1998 are reported by state of occurrence. Women undergoing an abortion were likely to be young (i.e., age < 25 years), white, and unmarried; slightly more than one half were obtaining an abortion for the first time. Of all abortions for which gestational age was reported, 56% were performed at < or = 8 weeks of gestation, and 88% were performed before 13 weeks. Overall, 19% of abortions were performed at the earliest weeks of gestation (< or = 6 weeks), 18% at 7 weeks, and 19% at 8 weeks. From 1992 (when this information was first collected) through 1998, an increasing percentage of abortions were performed at the very early weeks of gestation. Few abortions were provided after 15 weeks of gestation; 4% were obtained at 16-20 weeks, and 1.4% were obtained at > or = 21 weeks. A total of 24 reporting areas submitted information stating that they performed medical (nonsurgical) procedures (two of these areas categorized medical abortions with "other" procedures), making up < 1% of all procedures reported from all states. From 1993 through 1997 (years for which data have not been published previously and the most recent years for which such data are available), 36 women died as a result of complications from known legal induced abortion, and three deaths were associated with known illegal abortion. The annual case-fatality rate of legal induced abortion ranged from 0.3 to 0.8 abortion-related deaths per 100,000 reported legal induced abortions. INTERPRETATION: From 1990 through 1995, the number of abortions declined each year; in 1996, the number increased slightly, but in 1997, it declined to its lowest level since 1978. In 1998, the number of abortions continued to decrease when comparing the 48 reporting areas. In 1997, as in previous years, deaths related to legal induced abortions occurred rarely. PUBLIC HEALTH ACTIONS TAKEN: The number and characteristics of women who obtain abortions in the United States should continue to be monitored so that trends in induced abortion can be assessed and efforts to prevent unintended pregnancy can be evaluated.

Abortion surveillance--United States, 1999.

PROBLEM/CONDITION: CDC began abortion surveillance in 1969 to document the number and characteristics of women obtaining legal induced abortions and to monitor unintended pregnancy. REPORTING PERIOD COVERED: This report summarizes and describes data reported to CDC regarding legal induced abortions obtained in the United States in 1999. DESCRIPTION OF SYSTEM: For each year since 1969, CDC has compiled abortion data by state or area of occurrence. From 1973 through 1997, data were received from or estimated for 52 reporting areas in the United States: 50 states, the District of Columbia, and New York City. Beginning in 1998, CDC compiled abortion data from 48 reporting areas. Alaska, California, New Hampshire, and Oklahoma did not report, and data for these areas were not estimated. The availability of data regarding the characteristics of women who obtained an abortion in 1999 varied by state and by the number of states reporting each characteristic. The total number of legal induced abortions is reported by state of residence and also by state of occurrence for most areas; characteristics of women obtaining abortions in 1999 are reported by state of occurrence. RESULTS: A total of 861,789 legal induced abortions were reported to CDC for 1999, representing a 2.5% decrease from the 884,273 legal induced abortions reported by the same 48 reporting areas for 1998. The abortion ratio, defined as the number of abortions per 1,000 live births, was 256 in 1999, compared with 264 reported for 1998; the abortion rate for these 48 reporting areas was 17 per 1,000 women aged 15-44 years for 1999, the same as in 1997 and 1998. The highest percentages of abortions were reported for women aged < 25 years, women who were white, and unmarried women; slightly more than half were obtaining an abortion for the first time. Fifty-eight percent of all abortions for which gestational age was reported were performed at < or = 8 weeks of gestation, and 88% were performed before 13 weeks. From 1992 (when these data were first collected) through 1999, increases have occurred in the percentage of abortions performed at < or = 6 weeks of gestation. Few abortions were provided after 15 weeks of gestation; 4.3% were obtained at 16-20 weeks and 1.5% were obtained at > or = 21 weeks. A total of 27 reporting areas submitted data stating that they performed medical (nonsurgical) procedures (two of these areas categorized medical abortions with "other" procedures), making up < 1.0% of all procedures reported from all reporting areas. In 1998 (for which data have not been published previously and the most recent year for which such data are available), nine women died as a result of complications from known legal induced abortion; no deaths were associated with known illegal abortion. INTERPRETATION: From 1990 through 1997, the number of legal induced abortions gradually declined. In 1998 and in 1999, the number of abortions continued to decrease when comparing the same 48 reporting areas. In 1998, as in previous years, deaths related to legal induced abortions occurred rarely. PUBLIC HEALTH ACTION: Abortion surveillance in the United States should continue so that trends and characteristics of women who obtain legal induced abortions can be examined and efforts to prevent unintended pregnancy can be enhanced.

Abortion surveillance - United States, 2007.

PROBLEM/CONDITION: Since 1969, CDC has conducted abortion surveillance to document the number and characteristics of women obtaining legal induced abortions in the United States. REPORTING PERIOD COVERED: 2007. DESCRIPTION OF SYSTEM: Each year, CDC requests abortion data from the central health agencies of 52 reporting areas (the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and New York City). This information is provided voluntarily. For 2007, data were received from 49 reporting areas. For the purpose of trend analysis, data were evaluated from the 45 areas that reported data every year during the preceding decade (1998-2007). Abortion rates (number of abortions per 1,000 women) and ratios (number of abortions per 1,000 live births) were calculated using census and natality data, respectively. RESULTS: A total of 827,609 abortions were reported to CDC for 2007. Among the 45 reporting areas that provided data every year during 1998-2007, a total of 810,582 abortions (97.9% of the total) were reported for 2007; the abortion rate was 16.0 abortions per 1,000 women aged 15-44 years, and the abortion ratio was 231 abortions per 1,000 live births. Compared with 2006, the total number and rate of reported abortions decreased 2%, and the abortion ratio decreased 3%. Reported abortion numbers, rates, and ratios were 6%, 7%, and 14% lower, respectively, in 2007 than in 1998. Women aged 20-29 years accounted for 56.9% of all abortions in 2007 and for the majority of abortions during the entire period of analysis (1998-2007). In 2007, women aged 20-29 years also had the highest abortion rates (29.4 abortions per 1,000 women aged 20-24 years and 21.4 abortions per 1,000 women aged 25-29 years). Adolescents aged 15-19 years accounted for 16.5% of all abortions in 2007 and had an abortion rate of 14.5 abortions per 1,000 adolescents aged 15-19 years; women aged ≥35 years accounted for a smaller percentage (12.0%) of abortions and had lower abortion rates (7.7 abortions per 1,000 women aged 35-39 years and 2.6 abortions per 1,000 women aged ≥40 years). During 1998-2007, the abortion rate increased among women aged ≥35 years but decreased among adolescents aged ≤19 years and among women aged 20-29 years. In contrast to the percentage distribution of abortions and abortion rates, abortion ratios were highest at the extremes of reproductive age, both in 2007 and throughout the entire period of analysis. During 1998-2007 abortion ratios decreased among women in all age groups except for those aged <15 years. In 2007, most (62.3%) abortions were performed at ≤8 weeks' gestation, and 91.5% were performed at ≤13 weeks' gestation. Few abortions (7.2%) were performed at 14-20 weeks' gestation, and 1.3% were performed at ≥21 weeks' gestation. During 1998-2007, the percentage of abortions performed at ≤13 weeks' gestation remained stable; however, abortions performed at ≥16 weeks' gestation decreased by 13%-14%, and among the abortions performed at ≤13 weeks' gestation, the percentage performed at ≤6 weeks' gestation increased 65%. In 2007, 78.1% of abortions were performed by curettage at ≤13 weeks' gestation, and 13.1% were performed by early medical abortion (a nonsurgical abortion at ≤8 weeks' gestation); 7.9% of abortions were performed by curettage at >13 weeks' gestation. Among the 62.3% of abortions that were performed at ≤8 weeks' gestation, and thus were eligible for early medical abortion, 20.3% were completed by this method. Deaths of women associated with complications from abortions for 2007 are being investigated under CDC's Pregnancy Mortality Surveillance System. In 2006, the most recent year for which data were available, six women were reported to have died as a result of complications from known legal induced abortions. No reported deaths were associated with known illegal induced abortions. INTERPRETATION: Among the 45 areas that reported data every year during 1998-2007, the total number, rate, and ratio of reported abortions decreased during 2006-2007. This decrease reversed the increase in reported abortion numbers and rates that occurred during 2005-2006; however, reported abortion numbers and rates for 2007 still were higher than they had been previously in 2005. In 2006, as in previous years, reported deaths related to abortion were rare. PUBLIC HEALTH ACTION: Abortion surveillance in the United States continues to provide the data needed to examine trends in the number and characteristics of women obtaining abortions. Policymakers and program planners can use these data to guide and evaluate efforts to prevent unintended pregnancies.

Abortion surveillance--United States, 2008.

PROBLEM/CONDITION: Since 1969, CDC has conducted abortion surveillance to document the number and characteristics of women obtaining legal induced abortions in the United States. REPORTING PERIOD COVERED: 1999-2008. DESCRIPTION OF SYSTEM: Each year, CDC requests abortion data from the central health agencies of 52 reporting areas (the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and New York City). This information is provided voluntarily. For 2008, data were received from 49 reporting areas. For the purpose of trend analysis, data were evaluated from the 45 areas that reported data every year during 1999-2008. Abortion rates (number of abortions per 1,000 women) and ratios (number of abortions per 1,000 live births) were calculated using census and natality data, respectively. RESULTS: A total of 825,564 abortions were reported to CDC for 2008. Of these, 808,528 abortions (97.9% of the total) were from the 45 reporting areas that provided data every year during 1999-2008. Among these same 45 reporting areas, the abortion rate for 2008 was 16.0 abortions per 1,000 women aged 15-44 years, and the abortion ratio was 234 abortions per 1,000 live births. Compared with 2007, the total number and rate of reported abortions for these 45 reporting areas essentially were unchanged, although the abortion ratio was 1% higher. Reported abortion numbers, rates, and ratios remained 3%, 4%, and 10% lower, respectively, in 2008 than they had been in 1999. Women aged 20-29 years accounted for 57.1% of all abortions reported in 2008 and for the majority of abortions during the entire period of analysis (1999-2008). In 2008, women aged 20-29 years also had the highest abortion rates (29.6 abortions per 1,000 women aged 20-24 years and 21.6 abortions per 1,000 women aged 25-29 years). Adolescents aged 15-19 years accounted for 16.2% of all abortions in 2008 and had an abortion rate of 14.3 abortions per 1,000 adolescents aged 15-19 years; women aged ≥35 years accounted for a smaller percentage (11.9%) of abortions and had lower abortion rates (7.8 abortions per 1,000 women aged 35-39 years and 2.7 abortions per 1,000 women aged ≥40 years). Throughout the period of analysis, abortion rates decreased among adolescents aged ≤19 years, whereas they increased among women aged ≥35 years. Among women aged 20-24 years abortion rates decreased during 1999-2003 and then leveled off during 2004-2008. In contrast to the percentage distribution of abortions and abortion rates by age, abortion ratios in 2008 and throughout the entire period of analysis were highest among adolescents aged ≤19 years and lowest among women aged 30-39 years. Abortion ratios decreased during 1999-2008 for women in all age groups except for those aged <15 years; however, the steady decrease was interrupted from 2007 to 2008 when abortion ratios increased among women in all age groups except for those aged ≥40 years. In 2008, most (62.8%) abortions were performed at ≤8 weeks' gestation, and 91.4% were performed at ≤13 weeks' gestation. Few abortions (7.3%) were performed at 14-20 weeks' gestation, and even fewer (1.3%) were performed at ≥21 weeks' gestation. During 1999-2008, the percentage of abortions performed at ≤13 weeks' gestation remained stable, whereas abortions performed at ≥16 weeks' gestation decreased 13%-17%. Moreover, among the abortions performed at ≤13 weeks' gestation, the distribution shifted toward earlier gestational ages, with the percentage of abortions performed at ≤6 weeks' gestation increasing 53%. In 2008, 75.9% of abortions were performed by curettage at ≤13 weeks' gestation, and 14.6% were performed by early medical abortion (a nonsurgical abortion at ≤8 weeks' gestation); 8.5% of abortions were performed by curettage at >13 weeks' gestation. Among the 62.8% of abortions that were performed at ≤8 weeks' gestation and thus were eligible for early medical abortion, 22.5% were completed by this method. The use of medical abortion increased 17% from 2007 to 2008. Deaths of women associated with complications from abortions for 2008 are being investigated under CDC's Pregnancy Mortality Surveillance System. In 2007, the most recent year for which data were available, six women were reported to have died as a result of complications from known legal induced abortions. No reported deaths were associated with known illegal induced abortions. INTERPRETATION: Among the 45 areas that reported data every year during 1999-2008, the total number and rate of reported abortions essentially did not change from 2007 to 2008. This finding is consistent with the recent leveling off from steady decreases that had been observed in the past. In contrast, the abortion ratio increased from 2007 to 2008 after having decreased steadily. In 2007, as in previous years, reported deaths related to abortion were rare. PUBLIC HEALTH ACTION: This report provides the data for examining trends in the number and characteristics of women obtaining abortions. This information is needed to better understand the reasons why efforts to reduced unintended pregnancy have stalled and can be used by policymakers and program planners to guide and evaluate efforts to prevent unintended pregnancy.

Abortion surveillance - United States, 2006.

PROBLEM/CONDITION: Since 1969, CDC has conducted abortion surveillance to document the number and characteristics of women obtaining legal induced abortions in the United States. REPORTING PERIOD COVERED: 2006. DESCRIPTION OF SYSTEM: Each year, CDC requests abortion data from the central health agencies of 52 reporting areas (the 50 states, New York City, and the District of Columbia); these data are provided to CDC voluntarily. In 2006, data were received from 49 reporting areas. For the purpose of trend analysis, data were evaluated from the 46 areas that reported data every year during 1996-2006. RESULTS: For 2006, a total of 846,181 abortions were reported to CDC. Among the 46 areas that provided data consistently during 1996-2006, a total of 835,134 abortions (98.7% of the total) were reported; the abortion rate was 16.1 abortions per 1,000 women aged 15-44 years, and the abortion ratio was 236 abortions per 1,000 live births. During the previous decade (1997-2006), reported abortion numbers, rates, and ratios decreased 5.7%, 8.8%, and 14.8%, respectively; most of these declines occurred before 2001. During the previous year (2005-2006), the total number of abortions increased 3.1%, and the abortion rate increased 3.2%; the abortion ratio was stable. In 2006, as during the previous decade (1997-2006), women aged 20-29 years accounted for the majority (56.8%) of abortions and had the highest abortion rates (29.9 abortions per 1,000 women aged 20-24 years and 22.2 abortions per 1,000 women aged 25-29 years); by contrast, abortion ratios were highest at the extremes of reproductive age. Adolescents aged 15-19 years accounted for 16.5% of all abortions in 2006 and had an abortion rate of 14.8 abortions per 1,000 adolescents aged 15-19 years; women aged >or=35 years accounted for a smaller percentage (12.1%) of abortions and had lower abortion rates (7.8 abortions per 1,000 women aged 35-39 years and 2.6 abortions per 1,000 women aged >or=40 years). During 1997-2006, the percentage of abortions and the abortion rate increased among women aged >or=35 years but declined among adolescents aged or=21 weeks' gestation (1.3%). During 1997-2006, the percentage of abortions performed at

Abortion surveillance--United States, 2005.

PROBLEM/CONDITION: CDC began abortion surveillance in 1969 to document the number and characteristics of women obtaining legal induced abortions. REPORTING PERIOD COVERED: This report summarizes and describes data voluntarily reported to CDC regarding legal induced abortions obtained in the United States in 2005. DESCRIPTION OF SYSTEM: For each year since 1969, CDC has compiled abortion data by state or area of occurrence. Information is requested each year from all 50 states, New York City, and the District of Columbia. For 2005, data were received from 49 reporting areas: New York City, District of Columbia, and all states except California, Louisiana, and New Hampshire. For the purpose of trends analysis, data were evaluated from the 46 reporting areas that have been consistently reported since 1995. RESULTS: A total of 820,151 legal induced abortions were reported to CDC for 2005 from 49 reporting areas, the abortion ratio (number of abortions per 1,000 live births) was 233, and the abortion rate was 15 per 1,000 women aged 15--44 years. For the 46 reporting areas that have consistently reported since 1995, the abortion rate declined during 1995--2000 but has remained unchanged since 2000. For 2005, the highest percentages of reported abortions were for women who were known to be unmarried (81%), white (53%), and aged <25 years (50%). Of all abortions for which gestational age was reported, 62% were performed at 15 weeks' gestation (3.7% at 16--20 weeks and 1.3% at >/=21 weeks). A total of 35 reporting areas submitted data stating that they performed and enumerated medical (nonsurgical) procedures, making up 9.9% of all known reported procedures from the 45 areas with adequate reporting on type of procedure. In 2004 (the most recent years for which data are available), seven women died as a result of complications from known legal induced abortion. One death was associated with known illegal abortion. INTERPRETATION: For the 46 reporting areas that have consistently reported since 1995, the number of abortions has steadily declined over the previous 10 years. The abortion rate declined from 1995 to 2000, but remained unchanged since 2000. In 2004, as in the previous years, deaths related to legal induced abortions occurred rarely. PUBLIC HEALTH ACTION: Abortion surveillance in the United States continues to provide the data necessary for examining trends in numbers and characteristics of women who obtain legal induced abortions and to increase understanding of this pregnancy outcome. Policymakers and program planners use these data to improve the health and well-being of women and evaluate efforts to prevent unintended pregnancies.

Abortion surveillance--United States, 2004.

PROBLEM/CONDITION: CDC began abortion surveillance in 1969 to document the number and characteristics of women obtaining legal induced abortions. REPORTING PERIOD COVERED: This report summarizes and describes data voluntarily reported to CDC regarding legal induced abortions obtained in the United States in 2004. DESCRIPTION OF SYSTEM: For each year since 1969, CDC has compiled abortion data by state or area of occurrence. During 1973-1997, data were received from or estimated for 52 reporting areas in the United States: 50 states, the District of Columbia, and New York City. In 1998 and 1999, CDC compiled abortion data from 48 reporting areas. Alaska, California, New Hampshire, and Oklahoma did not report, and data for these states were not estimated. During 2000-2002, Oklahoma again reported these data, increasing the number of reporting areas to 49; for 2003 and 2004, Alaska again reported and West Virginia did not, maintaining the number of reporting areas at 49. RESULTS: A total of 839,226 legal induced abortions were reported to CDC for 2004 from 49 reporting areas, representing a 1.1% decline from the 848,163 legal induced abortions reported by 49 reporting areas for 2003. The abortion ratio, defined as the number of abortions per 1,000 live births, was 238 in 2004, a decrease from the 241 in 2003. The abortion rate was 16 per 1,000 women aged 15-44 years for 2004, the same since 2000. For the same 47 reporting areas, the abortion rate remained relatively constant during 1998-2004. In 2003 (the most recent years for which data are available), 10 women died as a result of complications from known legal induced abortion. No death was associated with known illegal abortion. The highest percentages of reported abortions were for women who were known to be unmarried (80%), white (53%), and aged <25 years (50%). Of all abortions for which gestational age was reported, 61% were performed at < or =8 weeks' gestation and 88% at <13 weeks. From 1992 (when detailed data regarding early abortions were first collected) through 2004, steady increases have occurred in the percentage of abortions performed at < or =6 weeks' gestation, except for a slight decline in 2003. A limited number of abortions were obtained at >15 weeks' gestation, including 4.0% at 16-20 weeks and 1.4% at > or =21 weeks. A total of 35 reporting areas submitted data stating that they performed and enumerated medical (nonsurgical) procedures, making up 9.7% of all known reported procedures from the 45 areas with adequate reporting on type of procedure. INTERPRETATION: During 1990--1997, the number of legal induced abortions gradually declined. When the same 47 reporting areas are compared, the number of abortions decreased during 1996-2001, then slightly increased in 2002 and again decreased in 2003 and 2004. In 2000 and 2001, even with one additional reporting state, the number of abortions declined slightly, with a minimal increase in 2002 and a further decrease in both 2003 and 2004. In 2003, as in the previous years, deaths related to legal induced abortions occurred rarely. PUBLIC HEALTH ACTION: Abortion surveillance in the United States continues to provide the data necessary for examining trends in numbers and characteristics of women who obtain legal induced abortions and to increase understanding of this pregnancy outcome. Policymakers and program planners use these data to improve the health and well-being of women and infants.

Abortion surveillance--United States, 2003.

PROBLEM/CONDITION: CDC began abortion surveillance in 1969 to document the number and characteristics of women obtaining legal induced abortions. REPORTING PERIOD COVERED: This report summarizes and describes data voluntarily reported to CDC regarding legal induced abortions obtained in the United States in 2003. DESCRIPTION OF SYSTEM: For each year since 1969, CDC has compiled abortion data by state or area of occurrence. During 1973-1997, data were received from or estimated for 52 reporting areas in the United States: 50 states, the District of Columbia, and New York City. In 1998 and 1999, CDC compiled abortion data from 48 reporting areas. Alaska, California, New Hampshire, and Oklahoma did not report, and data for these states were not estimated. During 2000-2002, Oklahoma again reported these data, increasing the number of reporting areas to 49, and for 2003, Alaska again reported and West Virginia did not, maintaining the number of reporting areas at 49. RESULTS: A total of 848,163 legal induced abortions were reported to CDC for 2003 from 49 reporting areas, representing a 0.7% decline from the 854,122 legal induced abortions reported by 49 reporting areas for 2002. The abortion ratio, defined as the number of abortions per 1,000 live births, was 241 in 2003, a decrease from the 246 in 2002. The abortion rate was 16 per 1,000 women aged 15-44 years for 2003, the same as for 2002. For the same 47 reporting areas, the abortion rate remained relatively constant during 1998-2003. During 2001-2002 (the most recent years for which data are available), 15 women died as a result of complications from known legal induced abortion. One death was associated with known illegal abortion. The highest percentages of reported abortions were for women who were unmarried (82%), white (55%), and aged <25 years (51%). Of all abortions for which gestational age was reported, 61% were performed at < or =8 weeks' gestation and 88% at <13 weeks. From 1992 (when detailed data regarding early abortions were first collected) through 2002, steady increases have occurred in the percentage of abortions performed at < or =6 weeks' gestation, with a slight decline in 2003. A limited number of abortions were obtained at >15 weeks' gestation, including 4.2% at 16--20 weeks and 1.4% at > or =21 weeks. A total of 36 reporting areas submitted data documenting that they performed and enumerated medical (nonsurgical) procedures, making up 8.0% of all known reported procedures from the 45 areas with adequate reporting on type of procedure. INTERPRETATION: During 1990-1997, the number of legal induced abortions gradually declined. When the same 47 reporting areas are compared, the number of abortions decreased during 1996-2001, then slightly increased in 2002 and again decreased in 2003. In 2000 and 2001, even with one additional reporting state, the number of abortions declined slightly, with a minimal increase in 2002 and a further decrease in 2003. In 2001 and 2002, as in the previous years, deaths related to legal induced abortions occurred rarely. PUBLIC HEALTH ACTION: Abortion surveillance in the United States continues to provide the data necessary for examining trends in numbers and characteristics of women who obtain legal induced abortions and to increase understanding of this pregnancy outcome. Policymakers and program planners use these data to improve the health and well-being of women and infants.

Abortion surveillance--United States, 2002.

PROBLEM/CONDITION: CDC began abortion surveillance in 1969 to document the number and characteristics of women obtaining legal induced abortions. REPORTING PERIOD COVERED: This report summarizes and describes data voluntarily reported to CDC regarding legal induced abortions obtained in the United States in 2002. DESCRIPTION OF SYSTEM: For each year since 1969, CDC has compiled abortion data by state or area of occurrence. During 1973-1997, data were received from or estimated for 52 reporting areas in the United States: 50 states, the District of Columbia, and New York City. In 1998 and 1999, CDC compiled abortion data from 48 reporting areas. Alaska, California, New Hampshire, and Oklahoma did not report, and data for these states were not estimated. For 2000-2002, Oklahoma again reported these data, increasing the number of reporting areas to 49. RESULTS: A total of 854,122 legal induced abortions were reported to CDC for 2002 from 49 reporting areas, representing a 0.1% increase from the 853,485 legal induced abortions reported by the same 49 reporting areas for 2001. The abortion ratio, defined as the number of abortions per 1,000 live births, was 246 in 2002, the same as reported for 2001. The abortion rate was 16 per 1,000 women aged 15-44 years for 2002, the same as for 2001. For the same 48 reporting areas, the abortion rate remained relatively constant during 1997-2002. The highest percentages of reported abortions were for women who were unmarried (82%), white (55%), and aged <25 years (51%). Of all abortions for which gestational age was reported, 60% were performed at < or =8 weeks' gestation and 88% at <13 weeks. From 1992 (when detailed data regarding early abortions were first collected) through 2002, steady increases have occurred in the percentage of abortions performed at < or =6 weeks' gestation. A limited number of abortions was obtained at >15 weeks' gestation, including 4.1% at 16-20 weeks and 1.4% at > or =21 weeks. A total of 35 reporting areas submitted data stating that they performed and enumerated medical (nonsurgical) procedures, accounting for 5.2% of all known reported procedures from the 45 areas with adequate reporting on type of procedure. INTERPRETATION: During 1990-1997, the number of legal induced abortions gradually declined. When the same 48 reporting areas were compared, the number of abortions decreased during 1996-2001, then slightly increased in 2002. In 2000 and 2001, even with one additional reporting state, the number of abortions declined slightly, with a minimal increase in 2002. PUBLIC HEALTH ACTION: Abortion surveillance in the United States continues to provide the data necessary for examining trends in numbers and characteristics of women who obtain legal induced abortions and to increase understanding of this pregnancy outcome. Policymakers and program planners use these data to improve the health and well-being of women and infants.

Abortion surveillance--United States, 2001.

PROBLEM/CONDITION: CDC began abortion surveillance in 1969 to document the number and characteristics of women obtaining legal induced abortions. REPORTING PERIOD COVERED: This report summarizes and describes data voluntarily reported to CDC regarding legal induced abortions obtained in the United States in 2001. DESCRIPTION OF SYSTEM: For each year since 1969, CDC has compiled abortion data by state or area of occurrence. During 1973-1997, data were received from or estimated for 52 reporting areas in the United States: 50 states, the District of Columbia, and New York City. In 1998 and 1999, CDC compiled abortion data from 48 reporting areas. Alaska, California, New Hampshire, and Oklahoma did not report, and data for these states were not estimated. In 2000 and 2001, Oklahoma again reported these data, increasing the number of reporting areas to 49. RESULTS: A total of 853,485 legal induced abortions were reported to CDC for 2001 from 49 reporting areas, representing a 0.5% decrease from the 857,475 legal induced abortions reported by the same 49 reporting areas for 2000. The abortion ratio, defined as the number of abortions per 1,000 live births, was 246 in 2001, compared with 245 reported for 2000. This represents a 0.4% increase in the abortion ratio. The abortion rate was 16 per 1,000 women aged 15-44 years for 2001, the same as for 2000. For both the 48 and 49 reporting areas, the abortion rate remained relatively constant during 1997-2001. The highest percentages of reported abortions were for women who were unmarried (82%), white (55%) and aged <25 years (52%). Of all abortions for which gestational age was reported, 59% were performed at < or =8 weeks' gestation and 88% at <13 weeks. From 1992 (when detailed data regarding early abortions were first collected) through 2001, steady increases have occurred in the percentage of abortions performed at < or =6 weeks' gestation. A limited number of abortions were obtained at >15 weeks' gestation, including 4.3% at 16-20 weeks and 1.4% at > or =21 weeks. A total of 35 reporting areas submitted data stating that they performed medical (nonsurgical) procedures, making up 2.9% of all reported procedures from the 45 areas with adequate reporting on type of procedure. In 2000 (the most recent year for which data are available), 11 women died as a result of complications from known legal induced abortion. No deaths were associated with known illegal abortion. INTERPRETATION: During 1990-1997, the number of legal induced abortions gradually declined. When the same 48 reporting areas are compared, the number of abortions decreased during 1996-2001. In 2000 and 2001, even with one additional reporting state, the number of abortions declined slightly. In 2000, as in previous years, deaths related to legal induced abortions occurred rarely (less than one death per 100,000 abortions). PUBLIC HEALTH ACTION: Abortion surveillance in the United States continues to provide the data necessary for examining trends in numbers and characteristics of women who obtain legal induced abortions and to increase understanding of this pregnancy outcome. Policymakers and program planners use these data to improve the health and well-being of women and infants.

Abortion surveillance--United States, 2000.

PROBLEM/CONDITION: CDC began abortion surveillance in 1969 to document the number and characteristics of women obtaining legal induced abortions. REPORTING PERIOD COVERED: This report summarizes and describes data reported to CDC regarding legal induced abortions obtained in the United States in 2000. DESCRIPTION OF SYSTEM: For each year since 1969, CDC has compiled abortion data by state or area of occurrence. During 1973-1997, data were received from or estimated for 52 reporting areas in the United States: 50 states, the District of Columbia, and New York City. In 1998 and 1999, CDC compiled abortion data from 48 reporting areas. Alaska, California, New Hampshire, and Oklahoma did not report, and data for these areas were not estimated. In 2000, Oklahoma again reported these data, increasing the number of reporting areas to 49. RESULTS: A total of 857,475 legal induced abortions were reported to CDC for 2000 from 49 reporting areas, representing a 0.5% decrease from the 861,789 legal induced abortions reported by 48 reporting areas for 1999 and a 1.3% decrease for the same 48 reporting areas that reported in 1999. The abortion ratio, defined as the number of abortions per 1,000 live births, was 246 in 2000 (for the same 48 reporting areas as 1999), compared with 256 reported for 1999. This represents a 3.8% decline in the abortion ratio. The abortion rate (for the same 48 reporting areas as 1999) was 16 per 1,000 women aged 15-44 years for 2000. This was also a 3.8% decrease from the rate reported for procedures performed during 1997-1999 for the same 48 reporting areas. The highest percentages of reported abortions were for women aged <25 years (52%), women who were white (57%), and unmarried women (81%). Fifty-eight percent of all abortions for which gestational age was reported were performed at < or =8 weeks of gestation, and 88% were performed before 13 weeks. From 1992 (when detailed data regarding early abortions were first collected) through 2000, steady increases have occurred in the percentage of abortions performed at < or =6 weeks of gestation. Few abortions were performed after 15 weeks of gestation; 4.3% were obtained at 16-20 weeks and 1.4% were obtained at > or =21 weeks. A total of 31 reporting areas submitted data stating that they performed medical (nonsurgical) procedures, making up 1.0% of all reported procedures from the 42 areas with adequate reporting on type of procedure. In 1998 and 1999 (the most recent years for which data are available), 14 women died as a result of complications from known legal induced abortion. Ten of these deaths occurred in 1998 and four occurred in 1999; no deaths were associated with known illegal abortion. INTERPRETATION: From 1990 through 1997, the number of legal induced abortions gradually declined. In 1998 and 1999, the number of abortions continued to decrease when comparing the same 48 reporting areas. In 2000, even with one additional reporting state, the number of abortions declined slightly. In 1998 and 1999, as in previous years, deaths related to legal induced abortions occurred rarely (<1 death per 100,000 abortions). PUBLIC HEALTH ACTION: Abortion surveillance in the United States continues to provide data necessary for examining trends in numbers and characteristics of women who obtain legal induced abortions and for increasing understanding of one additional aspect of the spectrum of pregnancy outcomes. Policy makers and program planners need these data to improve the health and well-being of women and infants.