Abortions down 18.7% in Florida year
TALAHASSEE - As Floridians decide Tuesday whether to enshrine abortion rights in the state Constitution, the number of abortions reported during the first 10 months of 2024 was down 18.7% from the same period in 2023, according to new state data.
The state Agency for Health Care Administration data showed that 52,753 abortions had been reported this year as of Thursday, compared with 64,918 last year. The decrease comes after a law took effect May 1 largely preventing abortions after six weeks of pregnancy.
The report and data compiled in November 2023 by The News Service of Florida show that abortions are down this year in counties across the state. Also, the number of out-of-state residents having abortions in Florida dropped from 5,898 during the first 10 months of 2023 to 3,500 this year.
Florida voters will decide Tuesday whether to approve Amendment 4, which says, in part, that no "law shall prohibit, penalize, delay, or restrict abortion before viability or when necessary to protect the patient's health, as determined by the patient's healthcare provider."