by dap | Apr 25, 2025 | Daily Signal
A
by researchers at the
School of Public Health and other major universities has put a damper on the claim that obstetrician-gynecologists (OB-GYNs) are systematically fleeing pro-life states or ones with more liberal abortion laws.
To the contrary, the cohort study measured data collected from Jan. 1, 2018, to Sept. 30, 2024. It concluded that the number of OB-GYNs in pro-life states actually increased at a faster rate than in pro-abortion states in the wake of the
(2022) decision by the U.S.
. That case overturned 1973’s Roe v. Wade and returned the issue of abortion regulation to the purview of individual states and
.
Based on data from more than 60,000 OB-GYNs, the report, released Monday, determined that the number of the women’s heath doctors actually increased by 8.3% in states where abortion was banned compared with 7.7% in states where abortion was protected after the Dobbs decision.
Overall, the study held that as of 2024, “the number of OB-GYNs did not significantly change across policy environments [states with varying abortion laws].”
According to the report, there are 14 states that ban abortions in almost all circumstances, and six states that have enforced bans on abortion after six to 12 weeks of gestation. The study’s findings are less surprising when one considers the fact that most OB-GYNs do not regularly conduct abortions. A
found that only 7% of OB-GYNs provided at least one abortion in 2013 and 2014.
“Given the media reports, we expected to find some indication of a systemic migration,” Becky Staiger, a co-author of the
.
“We searched in many different ways. At the end of the day, we let the data do the talking, and we determined that, at least at this point—two years after Dobbs—we weren’t seeing any evidence,” Staiger said.
The study concluded that for the measured cohort, “there were no significant differences in trends in OB-GYNs’ practice locations across states with different abortion-related policy environments after the Dobbs decision.”
Indeed, the study’s authors went on to note that “[t]he only statistically significant difference suggested that the share of physicians who are OB-GYNs decreased less in threatened states than in protected ones, opposite to the expected finding if OB-GYNs were leaving states where abortion is threatened.”
Reacting to the study, Dr.
, the CEO of the
, said she was heartened by the findings.
“I certainly was very encouraged, actually, to see this study published and published in JAMA [The Journal of the American Medical Association], when certainly the outcome of the study goes against the popular narrative right now,” Francis told The Daily Signal.
“This is actually exactly what scientific inquiry is supposed to be,” she continued. JAMA is one of the
in the U.S.
Francis was not surprised by the findings of the study, having worked in the OB-GYN field for two decades and never having to use induced abortion to care for her patients during that time.
“I practice in Indiana, where we have one of those laws and literally, the direction we got from my hospital was, ‘nothing changes’ when our law went into effect. We continue to take care of patients exactly how we always have,” she explained.
The physician said she hoped the study would improve dialogue on the issue.
“My hope is that this will help start honest conversations, and again, because we know that the vast majority of OB-GYNs don’t do induced abortions, therefore, their practice doesn’t need to change when a pro-life law goes into effect,” Francis said.
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