LAWRENCE – One of the main reasons supporting the Supreme Court’s 2022 Dobbs decision to restore federal rights to abortion is that it will reduce the number of abortions performed in the US. And according to new Kansas University research, it says that supporting the ban also sees an increase in financial burdens.
“Naturally, the kinds of countries that ban abortion are different from the kinds of countries that don’t,” said Lilly Springer, a doctoral candidate in economics at KU. “So there’s this little difference between how they support the health care system, the kind of funding they offer to social safety net programs and other kinds of support.”
His paper titled “Downstream Effects of the Post-Dobbs Abortion Ban: Birth Rates and WIC” found that implementing a total ban in early 2023 experienced a 1.6% increase in the overall birth rate. It also experienced a 4.3% and 2.1% increase in monthly postpartum and WIC (Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children) formula-fed women, respectively, leading to an additional $6.9 million in food costs.
The article appears in Economic Research.
“Abortion bans impact the most disadvantaged people, both in terms of education and income — and that’s a group of people who are likely to qualify for WIC,” Springer said.
Although WIC is a federally funded program (not an entitlement), it is still administered by the states. But states may not have the funds to provide benefits to all applicants.
“Theoretically, there may be some individuals who qualify and apply for WIC but do not receive assistance,” he said.
“But if you have more people eligible for this nutrition program, and your state has enough funding, then it will increase naturally. Plus, the people most likely to be affected by this restriction are those who potentially need more help when you add additional financial burdens such as children in the household.”
One of the unexpected findings shown by Springer is that the increase in the number of monthly births applies to both women whose highest educational attainment is a high school diploma and women who have a bachelor’s degree or higher.
“The average profile of a woman who gets an abortion is the ‘any woman’ type – there’s no particular type of person who gets an abortion. So I shouldn’t be surprised by that.
Springer started at KU five years ago. Her work as a health economist focuses on maternal and reproductive health care. The Indianapolis native will graduate in May and has secured a tenure-track position with American University in Washington, DC
“I was a second year Ph.D student right when the Dobbs decision happened. For an economist, this is a perfect natural experiment. There are some states that are not going to ban abortion, of course that country, and no one really expected it to happen. This is an ideal time to test causality,” he said.
While the immediate impact of the Dobbs decision is often the focus of debate, it’s the “downstream” impact that most interests Springer.
“We don’t always talk about the later effects of what happens when someone can’t get an abortion and how that can affect people and society writ large,” she said.
“If this is the way we go – and I’m not making a moral statement or a decision about what we should do – we need to support the population that can no longer get abortions through financial services, social systems, changes in our education and our health care system, all to ensure that we are not actively harming those who no longer have access.
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