Disturbing Oregon data shows increase in later abortions and abortion tourism

(Oregon Right to Life) —  Oregon Health Authority (OHA) last week published its finalized abortion numbers for 2024, reporting nearly 10,000 abortions carried out during the year. The data also show a 26% increase in later abortions at or after 23 weeks gestation, an uptick in procedures for out-of-state residents, and a doubling of abortions performed in an Eastern Oregon county bordering Idaho.

According to the OHA Center for Health Statistics data, providers in Oregon performed 9,860 total Oregon abortions in 2024, 215 fewer than the 10,075 abortions performed in 2023.

Providers carried out 365 abortions at or after 21 weeks gestation in 2024, up from 334 the prior year. 284 of those abortions were performed at or after 23 weeks gestation (roughly the age of “viability”), a 26% increase from the 225 abortions performed within that timeframe in 2023. Moreover, 134 abortions were performed at “unknown” gestation, the highest number since 2014.

Abortion is currently legal up to the moment of birth in Oregon, with no gestational limits, mandatory waiting periods, or even parental notification requirements for girls as young as 15. Oregon abortion providers at facilities like Lilith Clinic and Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) perform abortions well past fetal “viability.” According to Abortion Finder, OHSU performs abortions through 34 weeks gestation, a stage at which the unborn baby’s internal organs are almost fully developed, and he or she can feel pain, dream, and survive outside the womb.

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The OHA data also show an increase in abortions performed for out-of-state residents, especially in Eastern Oregon.

Of the 9,860 total Oregon abortions performed in 2024, 1,861 were for out-of-state residents – an increase of 200 from the 1,661 carried out in 2023 and 1,036 in 2022.

More than a third of the abortions for out-of-state residents took place in Eastern Oregon’s Malheur County, with 779 (88.9%) of the county’s total 876 abortions reportedly performed for out-of-state residents. The county had zero annual abortions prior to 2023, when a Planned Parenthood facility was opened in Ontario, about 60 miles west of Boise, Idaho. Idaho has a strong pro-life law protecting nearly all unborn lives from the moment of fertilization.

“The ongoing increase in late-term abortions and the cynical use of Eastern Oregon as an abortion destination is devastating and heartbreaking,” Oregon Right to Life Executive Director Lois Anderson said in a Monday statement. “The OHA data from this year once again shows that Oregon is moving in the wrong direction, continuing to trumpet abortion-on-demand – including when an unborn baby can feel pain and survive outside the womb – rather than life-affirming care that will truly support moms and families.”

“These data are more than just numbers: They represent unborn lives lost and families impacted by the trauma of abortion,” Anderson said. “We are deeply saddened for these 9,860 lives ended, and are more committed than ever to building an Oregon where every baby is welcomed and supported with real care that affirms life rather than destruction.”

Despite a small decline in the number of overall abortions, the 2024 data marks an upward trend in both later abortions and those performed for women traveling from out of state. 

Changes in the prior year were even more stark. In 2023, the number of women traveling to Oregon from other states for abortions rose 60% compared with 2022. Including abortions for Oregon residents and women traveling from out of state, overall abortions in Oregon increased 16.2% in 2023 – and more than two and a half times the number of late-term abortions (abortions performed at or after 23 weeks) took place in 2023 compared to 2022.

Amid the increase in overall abortions in Oregon, pro-life advocates are actively working to promote the availability of life-affirming resources and alternatives for abortion-vulnerable moms and families statewide. Pro-life state lawmakers have introduced and are supporting legislation this session that would, among other things, protect babies who survive abortions as well as pain-capable babies 15 weeks gestation and older. 

The majority of Americans do not support unlimited abortion. In a recent nationwide Knights of Columbus-Marist survey, 72% of people polled said they believe abortion should only be legal through six months of pregnancy at most, and 67% reject a position that would put no limits at all on abortion.