Planned Parenthood's Role in Surging Abortion Rates

A recent study published in Fortune Journals reveals that Planned Parenthood has significantly influenced the rise in U.S. abortion rates by prioritizing abortion as a central part of its business model. Researchers found that the organization's "supply-induced demand" strategy, which involves promoting abortion services to increase demand, played a key role in reversing a 28-year decline in abortions.
From 1973 to 1990, abortion rates in the U.S. steadily increased, but they began to decline until 2018. However, between 2018 and 2023, abortion numbers surged by 20%, coinciding with Planned Parenthood's aggressive promotion of mifepristone, a controversial abortion drug. The study highlights that Planned Parenthood has been a leading advocate for mifepristone since the 1980s, operating eight of the 17 abortion centers in U.S. clinical trials to secure FDA approval.
As of February 2025, 58% of Planned Parenthood's locations offered abortion via mifepristone. The study notes that FDA policies under Democratic administrations, including allowing mail-order prescriptions and reducing oversight, further facilitated the drug's accessibility.
Planned Parenthood's focus on abortion as both medical care and a tool for "autonomy and empowerment" has reshaped the abortion landscape. Despite ethical concerns and documented violations of health and safety standards, the organization reported performing over 402,000 abortions in 2023-2024, while receiving nearly $800 million in taxpayer funds.
Dr. James Studnicki, the study's lead author, warns that Planned Parenthood's strategic focus on abortion has "fundamentally reshaped the abortion landscape" and driven demand for abortions among healthy mothers with healthy babies.

Published: 6/13/2025