According to a new report from the pro-choice organization, The Guttmacher Institute, between 2008 and 2011, abortions in America fell by 13 percent—hitting the lowest rates in nearly 40 years. The research looked at women ages 15-44 and found that in 2011 there were just 16.9 abortions per 1,000 women in the U.S. In 1981, at the abortion rate’s peak, that number was 29.3. The latest numbers show that the American abortion rate is at its lowest point since 1973. Because research looked at the years of 2008-2011, the Institute says that the falling numbers were not the result of recent abortion-restricting legislative measures; instead, they pointed to the overall falling birth rate and greater access to contraception. The president of the National Right to Life Committee told the AP that they believe that the numbers reflect the awareness and lobbying efforts of anti-abortion groups. “It shows that women are rejecting the idea of abortion as the answer to an unexpected pregnancy” …
