The number of abortions performed in the United States fell to under one million for the first time since the mid-1970s in 2013 and 2014. And the abortion rate fell to its lowest level since the 1973 Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision that banned many state and federal restrictions on abortion. These findings were part of a study conducted by two researchers at the pro-abortion Guttmacher Institute, which released a report detailing the findings of the study on January 17.

The Guttmacher Institute was originally a division of Planned Parenthood, but was spun off as an independent, non-profit corporation in 1977. Planned Parenthood is the nation’s largest provider of abortions. According to their latest annual report (2013-2014), Planned Parenthood’s affiliates performed 327,166 abortions, amounting to more than 30 percent of the roughly one million abortions performed annually in the United States.

A summary of the report by National Public Radio (NPR) noted that 2013 was the first year in which the total number of abortions nationwide fell below one million (958,700) since 1975. In 2014 — the most recent year for which data was available — the number fell even more, to 926,200. The peak year was 1990, when more than 1.6 million abortions were performed. Additionally, the abortion rate fell to 14.6 abortions per 1,000 women aged 15 to 44, the lowest rate ever recorded by the Guttmacher Institute. A report in The Hill observed that the Guttmacher study did not provide reasons for the decline in abortions, but the authors wrote that it might be attributed to improved contraceptive use.

The authors also noted that laws passed at the state level restricting abortion could have contributed to the decline. “While many find ways to access care despite these obstacles, some of the abortion rate decline is likely attributable to women who were prevented from accessing needed services,” wrote Rachel Jones, lead author of the study.

A report about the study from LifeNews.com quoted a statement implying that the increase in restrictive laws related to abortion as having had an impact, noting, "The wave of abortion restrictions passed at the state level over the last five years could also have contributed to the decline by making it more difficult for women to access needed services in highly restrictive states.”

Megan Donovan, Guttmacher senior policy manager, further noted: “Restricting access to abortion may force women to delay the procedure or carry unwanted pregnancies to term. Instead, we should focus on increasing access to the full range of contraceptive methods, as well as to abortion services.

LifeNews.com also quoted a statement from Americans United for Life Acting President Clarke Forsythe, who celebrated the abortion decline, but noted that the numbers are only estimates.

“Still,” noted Forsythe, “we certainly hope that the Guttmacher Institute’s estimates are correct, and the number of abortions has decreased as women have chosen life rather than relying on abortion.”

The NPR report quoted Planned Parenthood President Cecile Richards, who said efforts to help women get better access to contraception are paying off. Richards offered recent improvements in the rate of unintended pregnancies, and a historically low teen pregnancy rate to support her statement.

“It shows that we’re finally doing a better job of helping women get access to birth control that’s affordable and that’s high-quality,” Richards said.

But, NPR reported, "As President-elect Donald Trump prepares to take office, Richards is gearing up for a fight over federal funding for women’s health services provided by Planned Parenthood. Republican leaders in Congress have vowed to work with Trump to repeal the Affordable Care Act, which requires contraceptive coverage for many women." "We shouldn’t go backwards on access to birth control,” Richards said.

Richards may claim that birth control is the answer, but another report from LifeNews the day before the Guttmacher report came out noted that “Planned Parenthood provides very limited health care services; its main business is abortions. The abortion chain does one third of all abortions in the U.S., or about 320,000 per year.”

The main focus of that LifeNews.com article was on Richards’ blatant disregard for the sensibilities of Christians by giving a speech plugging Planned Parenthood’s “services” while standing in front of a cross in the Metropolitan AME Church sanctuary in Washington, D.C., on January 14. Richards’ speech became publicized when a photo of her standing in front of the cross was tweeted by a group called Latinos for Planned Parenthood.

The event at the D.C. church was a “Here to Stay” rally protesting President-elect Donald Trump’s position on immigration. Planned Parenthood co-sponsored the immigration rally and used it to promote its abortion agenda.

“Cecile Richards spoke at the conference, because Democrats are masters at connecting every issue to abortion,” LifeNews quoted Chicks on the Right’s Hannah Bleau. “It’s incredibly unsettling. Here’s a woman who makes money off the slaughter of innocent babies. Seeing her behind a pulpit with crosses in the background? No. That doesn’t work for me.”

With abortions declining, as counted by the abortion lobby’s leading research institute’s own figures, there is cause for optimism among those who have long worked to end the killing of the unborn. If the new president follows through on his pledge to nominate pro-life justices to the Supreme Court, we may yet see an end to the slaughter.

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