Impact of the Supreme Court Decision to Overturn Roe V. Wade

A Research Review of Likely Consequences for Families and Society

Here at United Way of Coastal Fairfield County (UWCFC), we seek to advance the health, education, and financial stability of community residents.  We are dedicated to gender, racial, and ethnic equity. We seek to build communities where everyone can thrive.  That’s why we are gravely concerned about the likely impacts of the most recent ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court which overturned Roe v. Wade and removed federal protection for the right to abortion.

Current research on abortion restrictions indicates that the court ruling will have negative, long-term effects on maternal and infant health, on education attainment, on the financial stability of families.

Health Impact:  Limited Access to Care in an Era of Declining Maternal Health

The potential impact of the ruling on reproductive health, preventive care, and child well-being is cause for alarm.

The current state of maternal health in the US is already fragile:

• We have one of the highest rates of maternal death and morbidity in the developed world—nearly double the rate of other developed nations.

• Outcomes are even worse for black birthing people-who die in pregnancy-related deaths at three times the rate of their white peers—and for black infants, who are twice as likely to die in their first year of life.

• Those with unintended pregnancies are especially vulnerable, with lower rates of prenatal care and higher risks for medical complications and poor health outcomes postpartum. 

• New mothers lack support in the postpartum period.  The US is the only high wealth country not to guarantee access to provider home visits or paid parental leave after birth.  Research shows that these supports result in lower rates of maternal stress, re-hospitalization, and  death.

With the loss of access to abortion, the demand for pre-and post-natal care will grow dramatically, when there is already an overall shortage of maternity care providers relative to the number of births.

Provider scarcity poses a particular threat to those who suffer miscarriages.  Early pregnancy losses (which occur in 1 out of every 10 pregnancies) often require immediate medical intervention to prevent severe consequences, including death. They also require the same provider training, skills, and medicines used in abortion care.  Abortion restrictions will result in fewer providers and tools available to save lives.

The impact extends to routine preventive care.  Clinics that provide abortions also play a crucial role in primary care—from immunizations to screening tests for high blood pressure, diabetes, and cancer.  But the current ruling will mean loss of staff and clinics.

Loss of abortion access will also impact women’s mental health—increasing stress, anxiety and depression, according to American Psychological Association.   This comes at a time when youth are already experiencing what the US Surgeon General has called a “mental health crisis.”

The health impact of the Supreme Court ruling also extends to the health of the child: unplanned pregnancies are associated with higher rates of premature birth, low birth weight, cognitive impairment, and physical abuse and neglect.  These conditions negatively affect a child’s health and development, for a lifetime. 

Education Impact: Lower Attainment

Research indicates that abortion access has a significant, positive impact on educational achievement. 

The amicus brief filed in the recent abortion court case and signed by 154 economists notes that, for young women experiencing  an unwanted pregnancy, access to abortion increased the probability of higher achievement, notably:

• a 20-percentage point increase in finishing college 

• a 40-percentage point increase in entering a professional occupation

For black teen women, the impact was even more pronounced:

• a 22 to 24 percentage point increase in the probability of graduating high school 

• a 23 to 27 percentage point increase in the probability of attending college.

A recent study also notes the dramatic impact on young men.  Those whose partners were pregnant but had an abortion were four times more likely to graduate college. This affects as many as one in five men.

Long term, educational achievement is very closely tied to an individual’s financial stability.

Economic Impact:  On Families and Society

In testimony before the Senate Banking Committee last month, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen noted that restricting women's reproductive rights would have "very damaging effects on the economy." 

In fact, data indicate that restricting abortion access will have a negative economic impact on the parent, the child, and society at large. 

Already, working women face a “motherhood penalty,” with a one-third drop in expected earnings with the birth of a child, while male parents remain relatively unaffected.

But a number of studies have found that abortion restrictions reduce women’s participation in the workforce, decreasing earnings, and increasing rates of debt and poverty.

For example, data from the longitudinal Turnaway Study show the impacts on women who sought abortions but were turned away.  Compared to their peers who accessed abortion, those seeking abortion who could not access services were four times more likely to earn incomes below the Federal Poverty Level, and faced significant and lasting financial distress:

• 78% increase in past-due debt, and

• 81% increase in public records of bankruptcy, evictions, and court judgments.

Restricting access to abortion will pose a pronounced hardship for those who are economically vulnerable:  those who are unmarried, and people of color (85% & 59% of all abortion seekers, respectively).  It will also force additional reliance on childcare, even though childcare is currently unaffordable for many (i.e., the median cost of childcare is four times what’s affordable for someone earning $15 per hour).

The impact extends beyond the individual parent to the very environment into which a child is born.  One study shows that abortion access reduces the number children who live in single-parent households, who live in poverty, and who receive social services. Other studies show that abortion legalization reduces cases of child neglect and abuse.

The economic impact extends further to our society at large.  With low earnings due to lack of education, limited workforce participation due to lack of childcare access, and workplace disruption with turnover or employees’ taking time off, it is estimated that abortion restrictions currently cost state economies $105 billion per year—a figure expected to grow with the new ruling.  Conversely, the lifting of restrictions is projected to increase the national GDP by 0.5%, according to a study from the International Women’s Policy Center.

A Question for All of Us

We realize that the latest Supreme Court ruling is divisive—with advocates on both sides and strongly held beliefs. 

For our United Way, it is an issue with real world, potentially devastating consequences for the health, education, and financial stability of parents and families—especially for vulnerable populations—and for our society at large.

These are costs that will be borne by all of us.

 So, we ask ourselves, our partners, and our government representatives:   Are we prepared to pay these consequences?