In Florida, Amendment 4, a proposal to expand abortion rights in the state constitution, failed to pass by just 2.8 percentage points, highlighting the significant divide among Florida’s population on the issue of abortion
However, advocates on both sides are driven by a shared commitment to enhance the welfare of our society. The pro-life cause argues that the human rights of the unborn should be protected. Whereas, the pro-choice cause argues that women should have the right to make medical decisions without government intervention and does not believe in the full personhood of the unborn.
Despite their contrasting ideologies, members of these two groups can and should find common ground. Greater access to contraception and comprehensive sex education is in the best interest of everyone and has the potential to create a society with less need for abortions.
Data published in The Lancet shows that abortion rates are not correlated with the legal status of abortion. Instead, differences in abortion rates worldwide are associated with a country’s given stage of development, coinciding with the fact that modern contraception is more readily available in developed countries.
A 2012 study shows that providing free birth control reduces unplanned pregnancies. Every participant in the study was given free birth control, and annual abortion rates among participants ranged from 0.44% to 0.75%. This is 62 to 78 percent less than the national abortion rate of 1.96% in 2008, the last year for which figures were available at the time that the study was published.
Additionally, a study showed that women who received a free 1-year supply of oral contraceptives were less likely to have a pregnancy than women who received three cycles of pills or one cycle of pills. This demonstrates that even a few additional months of free birth control will make a difference in preventing unwanted pregnancies.
Issues relating to cost and accessibility prevent many women from acquiring contraception. 20% of uninsured women ages 18-49 say that they had to stop using a birth control method because they couldn’t afford it. Additionally, 33% of hormonal contraceptive users say they have missed taking their birth control because they were unable to get their next supply on time. This issue disproportionately affects low-income individuals, who were a larger share of the 33%.
People on both sides of the abortion debate can agree on the importance of decreasing unwanted pregnancies. By promoting greater access to educational resources and more equitable and affordable access to contraceptives, this goal can be achieved. According to research done using geographic information systems, contraception deserts, or regions where contraception is inaccessible, are present throughout the U.S. In fact, 17 to 53% of each state’s population lives in a contraception desert.
Although randomized controlled trials (RCT) evidence is mixed, observational studies consistently show a correlation between comprehensive sex education and lower pregnancy risks and an increased probability of contraceptive use.
Furthermore, states with abstinence-only sex education have higher teen pregnancy rates than those with comprehensive sex education. Evidence shows that abstinence-only education as a state policy may actually be contributing to the relatively high teenage pregnancy rate in the U.S.
People who are pro life and pro choice can find common ground on the importance of access to contraception and comprehensive sex education. If both sides join together, with more people and more funding being put towards this cause, there will be an even greater impact.