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NEW ORLEANS - The number of abortions in Louisiana decreased by 4 percent from 2015 to 2016, according to preliminary figures provided to Louisiana Right to Life recently by the Louisiana Department of Health.
It was the second straight year abortion numbers have dropped.
There were 8,972 abortions performed in Louisiana in 2016, down from 9,362 abortions reported in 2015 and 10,211 abortions reported in 2014. The number of abortions performed in the state had increased steadily from 2008-2014 as population numbers returned to pre-Katrina levels.
Even with numbers down nearly 14 percent since 2014, an average of 25 abortions per day were performed in Louisiana in 2016. Louisiana Right to Life will continue working hard to reduce these numbers until every baby is saved.
Benjamin Clapper, Executive Director of Louisiana Right to Life, said the following on the publishing of the statistics: "Every day in Louisiana in 2016, a baby who would have been aborted in 2015 was saved. These children will savor the joys of Louisiana because of their mothers' courageous decisions to choose life. While we are happy that fewer babies were aborted in 2016, we will continue to work until every baby is welcomed into this world and protected by law."
The number of abortions performed in Louisiana on women from another state, as well as parish by parish figures, have not yet been released by the state.
Some quick facts about the 2016 statistics in Louisiana:
- There were 8,972 abortions performed in 2016. That means there were, on average, 25 abortions per day.
- 34 girls under the age of 15 had abortions in 2016. Another 811 girls between the ages of 15-19 aborted their babies.
- The largest number of abortions - 2,668 - were performed on women between the ages of 25-29. There were also 1,127 women ages 35 and older who had abortions in 2016.
- Women categorized as "non-white" accounted for 70% of abortions performed in 2016.
- 85% of women who had abortions in 2016 were unmarried.
- Nearly 70% of babies were aborted within eight weeks of pregnancy.
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