TY - JOUR
T1 - COVID-19 impacts on abortion care-seeking experiences in the Washington, DC, Maryland, and Virginia regions of the United States
AU - Dozier, Jessica L.
AU - Sufrin, Carolyn
AU - Berger, Blair O.
AU - Burke, Anne E.
AU - Bell, Suzanne O.
N1 - Funding Information:
We thank Kimberly Dong, Hayley McMahon, Eliza Pentz, and Anushka Vakil for their assistance in conducting phone surveys.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 University of Ottawa.
PY - 2022/9
Y1 - 2022/9
N2 - Context: Many people wanted to avoid or delay childbearing during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study sought to examine the extent COVID-19 influenced abortion care-seeking in a region that did not enact policy restricting abortion due to the pandemic, has high service availability, and few abortion-restrictive policies. Methodology: We conducted telephone surveys with adults (n=72) requesting abortion appointments between September 2020 and March 2021 at five clinics in Washington, DC, Maryland, and Virginia. We used χ2 tests to compare sociodemographic, reproductive history, service delivery characteristics, and pandemic-related life changes by whether COVID-19 influenced abortion care-seeking. Results: Most respondents (93%) had an abortion at the time of the survey, 4% were awaiting their scheduled appointment, and 3% did not have an appointment scheduled. Nearly 40% of people reported COVID-19 influenced their decision to have an abortion. These individuals were significantly more likely to report “not financially prepared” (44% vs. 16%) as a reason for termination compared to people reporting no influence of COVID-19. They were also more likely to have lost or changed their health insurance due to pandemic-related employment changes (15% vs. 2%), report substantial money difficulties due to COVID-19 (59% vs. 33%), and report that paying for their abortion was “very difficult” (25% vs. 2%). Conclusion: COVID-19 influenced many people to have an abortion, particularly those financially disadvantaged by the pandemic. Expansion of Medicaid abortion coverage in Washington, DC and Virginia could reduce financial barriers to care and help people to better meet their reproductive needs amid future crises.
AB - Context: Many people wanted to avoid or delay childbearing during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study sought to examine the extent COVID-19 influenced abortion care-seeking in a region that did not enact policy restricting abortion due to the pandemic, has high service availability, and few abortion-restrictive policies. Methodology: We conducted telephone surveys with adults (n=72) requesting abortion appointments between September 2020 and March 2021 at five clinics in Washington, DC, Maryland, and Virginia. We used χ2 tests to compare sociodemographic, reproductive history, service delivery characteristics, and pandemic-related life changes by whether COVID-19 influenced abortion care-seeking. Results: Most respondents (93%) had an abortion at the time of the survey, 4% were awaiting their scheduled appointment, and 3% did not have an appointment scheduled. Nearly 40% of people reported COVID-19 influenced their decision to have an abortion. These individuals were significantly more likely to report “not financially prepared” (44% vs. 16%) as a reason for termination compared to people reporting no influence of COVID-19. They were also more likely to have lost or changed their health insurance due to pandemic-related employment changes (15% vs. 2%), report substantial money difficulties due to COVID-19 (59% vs. 33%), and report that paying for their abortion was “very difficult” (25% vs. 2%). Conclusion: COVID-19 influenced many people to have an abortion, particularly those financially disadvantaged by the pandemic. Expansion of Medicaid abortion coverage in Washington, DC and Virginia could reduce financial barriers to care and help people to better meet their reproductive needs amid future crises.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85133452314&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85133452314&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1363/psrh.12202
DO - 10.1363/psrh.12202
M3 - Article
C2 - 35790127
AN - SCOPUS:85133452314
SN - 1538-6341
VL - 54
SP - 68
EP - 79
JO - Perspectives on sexual and reproductive health
JF - Perspectives on sexual and reproductive health
IS - 3
ER -