Restrictive abortion laws, antiabortion attitudes and women’s contraceptive use

This study empirically examines the public and social policy question: Do state restrictive abortion laws affect the likelihood that women use more highly effective contraceptive methods? Using contraceptive use data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System 2002 survey, the empirical results show that Medicaid Funding Restrictions, Informed Consent Laws, and Two-Visit Laws have no significant impact on adult women’s (ages 18–44, 18–24, 25–34, 35–44) use of highly effective contraceptive methods. A state’s antiabortion attitudes, which likely contribute to the enactment of restrictive abortion laws in a state, are a major factor in inducing greater use of highly effective contraceptive methods by adult women at-risk of an unintended pregnancy. The empirical findings remain robust for various population subgroups of adult women (i.e., married, single, employed, unemployed, with children, no children and college educated).

► Examination of the impact of antiabortion laws on women’s contraceptive use. ► Medicaid funding restrictions, Informed Consent and Two-Visit Laws have no impact. ► Antiabortion attitudes have a positive impact on women’s contraceptive use.