Researchers from Johns Hopkins University found that pro-life policies in Texas likely resulted in 9,799 additional births between April 2022 and December 2022. This study is the first of its kind to examine the impact of abortion laws on birth rates.
“There has been much speculation about the impact of restrictive abortion policies on the number of births,” said Alison Gemmill, one of the study’s lead researchers, in a press release issued by the university.
“Although our study does not detail the reasons for these extra births, our results strongly suggest that a substantial number of pregnant women in Texas were unable to overcome barriers to abortion access.”
The study created a statistical model of Texas to estimate likely birth rates in the state if it hadn’t adopted abortion restrictions, using birth data from all 50 states and Washington, D.C. D.C., from 2016 to 2022.
The model suggests that, without the new abortion restrictions, there would likely have been 287,289 births during that nine-month period. With the restrictions in place, the state recorded 297,088 births, an increase of more than 3.35%.
“We are thrilled to see that the protective laws put in place by Texas in 2021 are working: Abortions are down dramatically and births are up,” Joe Pojman, executive director of Texas Alliance for Life told Catholic News Agency (CNA).
“These children are welcome in Texas, which provides extensive resources for women with unplanned pregnancies to bring their unborn children to term, deliver them, and keep them or place them for adoption,” Pojman said.
“Texas has more than 300 pregnancy centers, maternity homes, and adoption agencies, as well as countless church ministries that care for mothers and babies in the years after birth.”
Mr. Pojman added that the organization expects birth rates to continue to rise thanks to the additional funds provided by state legislature for the “Alternatives to Abortion” program.
Kimberlyn Schwartz, spokesperson for Texas Right to Life, told CNA, “We praise God for every baby saved by the Texas Heartbeat Act.” “It goes beyond reality to see the historic and life-saving impact of our pro-life law and the unique role Texas Right to Life has played in its passage,” Schwartz said.
“This new study highlights the power of our movement: nearly 10,000 children are alive today who could have been aborted. But our work doesn’t stop there: we look forward to helping mothers and families across our state care for their children through our movement.”
The Johns Hopkins University press release says the authors will conduct further research on how abortion restrictions have affected different demographic groups when more data becomes available.
A Texas law prohibiting abortions from the time the fetal heartbeat can be heard, which occurs around six weeks gestation, has resulted in nearly 9,800 additional births in the state over a nine-month period, according to a study published in The Journal of the American Medical Association.