BroadStreet is a data and software company for social good. We believe that all people deserve access to the best information possible. BroadStreet builds our software for those working towards community change. We strive to ensure that data is accessible, affordable, and delightful to explore. BroadStreet has thousands of members all over the country. Members include students, non-profit leaders, and executives of multi-state and national organizations. We are proud of the range of our members. Here at BroadStreet we believe that ‘Good Data Heals the World’ and given the ever-changing policy landscape surrounding maternal health, we believe it prudent to capture and create a repository of maternal health data for future populations. In the anticipated policy changes that occurred at the federal level in June, 2022, an initiative started to quickly save any data regarding Induced Terminations of Pregnancy (ITOP) before any data could potentially be lost due to removal from public access. As time progressed, the Maternal Health Track was created. As a track, we are trying to create a data repository of ITOP data at the county- and demographic- levels, and building out a dataset that allows a cohesive and standardized reporting mechanism for all states and counties that have publicly available data dashboards.
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Each state varies in how they define abortion and ITOP.
| State | Definitions of Abortion / ITOP | Definition Source |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | "Abortion" means the use or prescription of any instrument, medicine, drug, or any other substance or device with the intent to terminate the pregnancy of a woman known to be pregnant with knowledge that the termination by those means will with reasonable likelihood cause the death of the unborn child. Such use or prescription is not an abortion if done with the intent to save the life or preserve the health of an unborn child, remove a dead unborn child, or to deliver an unborn child prematurely in order to preserve the health of both the mother (pregnant woman) and her unborn child. The term, abortion, as used in these rules, does not include a procedure or act to terminate the pregnancy of a woman with an ectopic pregnancy, nor does it include the procedure or act to terminate the pregnancy of a woman when the fetus has a lethal anomaly. For purposes of these rules, a lethal fetal anomaly means that the child would die at birth or be still born. For the purpose of this definition, ectopic pregnancy means any pregnancy resulting from a fertilized egg that has implanted or attached outside the uterus. The term also includes a pregnancy resulting from a fertilized egg implanted inside the cornu of the uterus. | Rules of the Alabama State Department of Public Health (https://drive.google.com/file/d/1NaUQZT1JCOZ8a434C1QLiV2VbMcJNit6/view) |
| Alaska | The purposeful interruption of pregnancy with the intention other than to produce a live-born infant or to remove a dead fetus, and which does not result in a live birth. | 2021 Annual Report in Appendix A (https://drive.google.com/file/d/16MkVIiCqUi1B4khwoZxSpiz721L0PcPJ/view) |
| Arizona | Abortion means the use of any means to terminate the clinically diagnosable pregnancy of a woman with knowledge that the termination by those means will cause, with reasonable likelihood, the death of the unborn child. Abortion does not include birth control devices, oral contraceptives used to inhibit or prevent ovulation, conception, or the implantation of a fertilized ovum in the uterus, or the use of any means to save the life or preserve the health of the unborn child, to preserve the life or health of the child after a live birth, to terminate an ectopic pregnancy, or to remove a dead fetus. | 2020 Abortion Report in Glossary (https://drive.google.com/file/d/1bkOyklXRxy_V7320NPBamk3m2bI5PS-v/view) |
| Arkansas | “Abortion” means the act of using, prescribing, administering, procuring, or selling of any instrument, medicine, drug, or any other substance, device, or means with the purpose to terminate the pregnancy of a woman, with knowledge that the termination by any of those means will with reasonable likelihood cause the death of the unborn child. | https://www.arkleg.state.ar.us/Bills/FTPDocument?path=%2FBills%2F2022F%2FPublic%2FSR16.pdf |
| California | “‘Abortion’ means any medical treatment intended to induce the termination of a pregnancy except for the purpose of producing a live birth). | https://www.shouselaw.com/ca/defense/laws/abortion-laws/ |
| Colorado | Induced termination of pregnancy means the purposeful interruption of pregnancy with the intention other than to produce a live-born infant or to remove a dead fetus and which does not result in a live birth. | https://www.sos.state.co.us/CCR/GenerateRulePdf.do?ruleVersionId=8435&fileName=5%20CCR%201006-1 (page 12) |
| Connecticut | ||
| Delaware | “Abortion” means the use of any instrument, medicine, drug or any other substance or device to terminate the pregnancy of a woman known to be pregnant, with an intention other than to increase the probability of a live birth, to preserve the life or health of the child after live birth, or to remove a dead fetus. | https://delcode.delaware.gov/title24/c017/sc08/index.html |
| District of Columbia | The purposeful interruption of pregnancy with the intention other than to produce a live-born infant or to remove a dead fetus. | 2011 - 2015 Report in Technical Notes (https://drive.google.com/file/d/1TZV6FcJ5YjMwHaxnE6hx1PSmLqfnLocE/view) |
| Florida | “Abortion” means the termination of human pregnancy with an intention other than to produce a live birth or to remove a dead fetus. | http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0300-0399/0390/0390.html |
| Georgia | The purposeful interruption of pregnancy with the intention other than to: 1) produce a live-born infant; or 2) to remove a dead fetus. An induced termination of pregnancy does not result in a live birth. | https://oasis.state.ga.us/oasis/webquery/help/DefITOP.html |
| Hawaii | ITOPs are the purposeful interruptions of an intrauterine pregnancy with the intention other than to produce a live-born infant. | https://drive.google.com/file/d/18tuPVDuQSiaZHIXZgatwzo-iZBUqO06n/view |
| Idaho | Induced Abortion is a legal medical procedure that is intended to terminate a pregnancy without a live birth. | Abortion Annual Report 2020 (page 4) (https://drive.google.com/drive/u/0/folders/1NeWJ8QnVObz_9D0L_cGs_R_VxNTdwrm) |
| Illinois | "Abortion" means the use of any instrument, medicine, drug or any other substance or device to terminate the pregnancy of a woman known to be pregnant with an intention other than to increase the probability of a live birth, to preserve the life or health of the child after live birth, or to remove a dead fetus. | HB2058 Bill (https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/fulltext.asp?DocName=&SessionId=108&GA=101&DocTypeId=HB&DocNum=2058&GAID=15&LegID=&SpecSess=&Session=) |
| Indiana | "Abortion" means the termination of human pregnancy with an intention other than to produce a live birth or to remove a dead fetus. The term includes abortions by surgical procedures and by abortion inducing drugs. | Indiana Code § 16-18-2-1. "Abortion" :: 2017 Indiana Code :: US Codes and Statutes :: US Law :: Justia (https://law.justia.com/codes/indiana/2017/title-16/article-18/chapter-2/section-16-18-2-1/) |
| Iowa | “Abortion” means the termination of a human pregnancy with the intent other than to produce a live birth or to remove a dead fetus. | https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/2020/146B.pdf |
| Kansas | "Abortion" means the use or prescription of any instrument, medicine, drug or any other substance or device to terminate the pregnancy of a woman known to be pregnant with an intention other than to increase the probability of a live birth, to preserve the life or health of the child after live birth, or to remove a dead unborn child who died as the result of natural causes in utero, accidental trauma or a criminal assault on the pregnant woman or her unborn child, and which causes the premature termination of the pregnancy. | http://www.kslegislature.org/li_2012/b2011_12/statute/065_000_0000_chapter/065_067_0000_article/065_067_0001_section/065_067_0001_k/#:~:text=(a)%20%22Abortion%22%20means,live%20birth%2C%20or%20to%20remove |
| Kentucky | "Abortion" means the use of any means whatsoever to terminate the pregnancy of a woman known to be pregnant with intent to cause fetal death. | https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=46069#:~:text=(1)%20%22Abortion%22%20means,to%20meet%20the%20standards%20of |
| Louisiana | An Induced Termination of Pregnancy (ITOP) is the intentional interruption of a pregnancy with the objective of preventing a live birth. | https://ldh.la.gov/page/709 |
| Maine | The intentional interruption of a pregnancy by the application of external agents, whether chemical or physical or by the ingestion of chemical agents with an intention other than to produce a live birth or to remove a dead fetus. | https://legislature.maine.gov/statutes/22/title22sec1598.html |
| Maryland | “Abortion” means the intentional killing of an unborn human being by use or prescription of any procedure, instrument, or drug or any other substance, device, or means to cause or intend to cause the death of an unborn human being. | https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/2022RS/fnotes/bil_0004/sb0504.pdf |
| Massachusetts | “Abortion”, any medical treatment intended to induce the termination of, or to terminate, a clinically diagnosable pregnancy except for the purpose of producing a live birth; provided, however, that “abortion” shall not include providing care related to a miscarriage. | https://www.mass.gov/info-details/mass-general-laws-c112-ss-12k |
| Michigan | The intentional use of an instrument, drug, or other substance or device to terminate a woman's pregnancy for a purpose other than to increase the probability of a live birth, to preserve the life or health of the child after live birth, or to remove a dead fetus. | http://www.legislature.mi.gov/(S(2xjejvhvivo2wktcwvaxzv4v))/mileg.aspx?page=getObject&objectName=mcl-333-17016#:~:text=(a)%20%22Abortion%22%20means,to%20remove%20a%20dead%20fetus. |
| Minnesota | An act, procedure or use of any instrument, medicine or drug which is supplied or prescribed for or administered to a pregnant woman which results in the termination of pregnancy | https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/145.411 |
| Mississippi | The use or prescription of an instrument, medicine, drug, or other substance or device with the intent to terminate a clinically diagnosable pregnancy for reasons other than to increase the probability of a live birth, to preserve the life or health of the unborn human being, to terminate an ectopic pregnancy, or to remove a dead unborn human being. | http://billstatus.ls.state.ms.us/documents/2018/html/HB/1500-1599/HB1510SG.htm#:~:text=(a)%20%22Abortion%22%20means,human%20being%2C%20to%20terminate%20an |
| Missouri | The act of using or prescribing any instrument, device, medicine, drug, or any other means or substance with the intent to destroy the life of an embryo or fetus in his or her mother’s womb; or, the intentional termination of the pregnancy of a mother by using or prescribing any instrument, device, medicine, drug, or other means or substance with an intention other than to increase the probability of a live birth or to remove a dead or dying unborn child; | https://health.mo.gov/safety/abortion/pdf/abortion-facility-rules.pdf |
| Montana | The spontaneous or induced termination of a pregnancy, without live birth. | https://dphhs.mt.gov/assets/publichealth/Epidemiology/VSU/VSU2019AnnualReport.pdf (Page 6) |
| Nebraska | Abortion means the use or prescription of any instrument, medicine, drug, or other substance or device intentionally to terminate the pregnancy of a woman known to be pregnant with an intention other than to increase the probability of a live birth, to preserve the life or health of the child after live birth, or to remove a dead unborn child, and which causes the premature termination of the pregnancy. | https://nebraskalegislature.gov/laws/statutes.php?statute=28-326 |
| Nevada | ||
| New Hampshire | ||
| New Jersey | “Abortion” means the use or prescription of any instrument, medicine, drug, or any other substance or device to intentionally kill the unborn child of a woman known to be pregnant or to intentionally terminate the pregnancy of a woman known to be pregnant, with an intention other than: after viability, to produce a live birth and preserve the life and health of the child born alive; or to remove a dead unborn child. | https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/bill-search/2022/S1107/bill-text?f=S1500&n=1107_I1 |
| New Mexico | "abortion" means the intentional termination of the pregnancy of a female by a person who knows the female is pregnant. | https://www.nmlegis.gov/Sessions/17%20Regular/bills/senate/SB0183.pdf |
| New York | “Induced termination of pregnancy” means the purposeful interruption of an intrauterine pregnancy with the intention other than to produce a live-born infant and which does not result in a live birth. This definition excludes management or prolonged retention of products of conception following a spontaneous termination of pregnancy. | https://www1.nyc.gov/assets/doh/downloads/pdf/about/healthcode/health-code-article203.pdf |
| North Carolina | The purposeful interruption of pregnancy with the intention other than to produce a liveborn infant or to remove a dead fetus and which does not result in a live birth. Liberalization of N.C.'s abortion laws began in 1967, but it was not until 1973 that abortion became available on demand, with the condition it be performed by a licensed physician in a hospital or licensed abortion clinic. Abortion data by mother's county of residence became available in 1978. | https://schs.dph.ncdhhs.gov/data/glossary.htm |
| North Dakota | "Abortion" means the act of using or prescribing any instrument, medicine, drug, or any other substance, device, or means with the intent to terminate the clinically diagnosable intrauterine pregnancy of a woman, including the elimination of one or more unborn children in a multifetal pregnancy, with knowledge that the termination by those means will with reasonable likelihood cause the death of the unborn child. Such use, prescription, or means is not an abortion if done with the intent to: a. Save the life or preserve the health of the unborn child; b. Remove a dead unborn child caused by spontaneous abortion; or c. Treat a woman for an ectopic pregnancy. |
https://www.ndlegis.gov/cencode/t14c02-1.pdf |
| Ohio | As used in the Revised Code, "abortion" means the purposeful termination of a human pregnancy by any person, including the pregnant woman herself, with an intention other than to produce a live birth or to remove a dead fetus or embryo. Abortion is the practice of medicine or surgery for the purposes of section 4731.41 of the Revised Code. | https://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-revised-code/section-2919.11 |
| Oklahoma | "Abortion" means the purposeful termination of a human pregnancy, by any person with an intention other than to produce a live birth or to remove a dead unborn child. | https://drive.google.com/file/d/1hNEFe899omRsc_4aglbj-tYb_T_nOO9-/view?usp=share_link |
| Oregon | “Abortion” means the use or prescription of a drug, instrument, medicine or other substance or device to intentionally terminate the pregnancy of a person known to be pregnant with a purpose other than: (a) After viability, to produce a live birth and preserve the life and health of the child born alive; or (b) To remove a dead unborn child |
https://olis.oregonlegislature.gov/liz/2022R1/Downloads/MeasureDocument/HB4042/Introduced |
| Pennsylvania | The use of any means to terminate the clinically diagnosable pregnancy of a woman with knowledge that the termination by those means will, with reasonable likelihood, cause the death of the unborn child except that, for the purposes of this chapter, abortion shall not mean the use of an intrauterine device or birth control pill to inhibit or prevent ovulation, fertilization or the implantation of a fertilized ovum within the uterus. | https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/LI/consCheck.cfm?txtType=HTM&ttl=18&div=0&chpt=32#:~:text=%22Abortion.%22%20The%20use%20of,use%20of%20an%20intrauterine%20device |
| Rhode Island | ||
| South Carolina | "Abortion" means the use of an instrument, medicine, drug, or other substance or device with intent to terminate the pregnancy of a woman known to be pregnant for reasons other than to increase the probability of a live birth, to preserve the life or health of the child after live birth, or to remove a dead fetus. | https://www.scstatehouse.gov/code/t44c041.php#:~:text=(a)%20%22Abortion%22%20means,to%20remove%20a%20dead%20fetus. |
| South Dakota | "Abortion," the intentional termination of the life of a human being in the uterus | https://sdlegislature.gov/Statutes/Codified_Laws/2057210 |
| Tennessee | "Abortion" means the use of any instrument, medicine, drug, or any other substance or device with intent to terminate the pregnancy of a woman known to be pregnant with intent other than to increase the probability of a live birth, to preserve the life or health of the child after live birth, or to remove a dead fetus | https://law.justia.com/codes/tennessee/2018/title-39/chapter-15/part-2/section-39-15-211/ |
| Texas | The act of using or prescribing an instrument, a drug, a medicine, or any other substance, device, or means with the intent to cause the death of an unborn child of a woman known to be pregnant. The term does not include birth control devices or oral contraceptives. | https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/HS/htm/HS.171.htm |
| Utah | (a) "Abortion" means: (i) the intentional termination or attempted termination of human pregnancy after implantation of a fertilized ovum through a medical procedure carried out by a physician or through a substance used under the direction of a physician; (ii) the intentional killing or attempted killing of a live unborn child through a medical procedure carried out by a physician or through a substance used under the direction of a physician; or (iii) the intentional causing or attempted causing of a miscarriage through a medical procedure carried out by a physician or through a substance used under the direction of a physician. (b) "Abortion" does not include: (i) removal of a dead unborn child; (ii) removal of an ectopic pregnancy; or (iii) the killing or attempted killing of an unborn child without the consent of the pregnant woman, unless: (A) the killing or attempted killing is done through a medical procedure carried out by a physician or through a substance used under the direction of a physician; and (B) the physician is unable to obtain the consent due to a medical emergency. |
https://le.utah.gov/xcode/Title76/Chapter7/76-7-S301.html |
| Vermont | The purposeful interruption of an intrauterine pregnancy with the intention other than to produce a live-born infant or other than to remove a dead fetus, and which does not result in a live birth. | 2019 Vital Statistics Annual Report (Page 5) (https://drive.google.com/drive/u/0/folders/1rduWW4_Zd7f3MVX9niCKYMdCR3y2aUiB) |
| Virginia | The intentional interruption of pregnancy with the intention to produce other than a live-born infant or to remove a dead fetus and which does not result in a live birth. | https://drive.google.com/drive/u/0/folders/1YvS-jV-riCJ9WQRsUoblAAW6NK2ICczI |
| Washington | The purposeful interruption of pregnancy, irrespective of the duration of pregnancy, with the intention other than to produce a live born infant or to remove a dead fetus, the result in which is not a live birth. | Vital Statistics Technical Notes (Page 5-6) (https://www.google.com/url?q=https://doh.wa.gov/data-and-statistical-reports/health-statistics/abortion-and-pregnancy&sa=D&source=docs&ust=1683305913897365&usg=AOvVaw3EiSKcgt_vyh7n4RLsnT6s) |
| West Virginia | “Abortion” means the use of any instrument, medicine, drug, or any other substance or device with intent to terminate the pregnancy of a female known to be pregnant and with intent to cause the expulsion of a fetus other than by live birth. | West Virginia Code |
| Wisconsin | In Wis. Stat. § 69.186, the term “induced abortion” means: The termination of a uterine pregnancy by a physician of a woman known by the physician to be pregnant, for a purpose other than to produce a live birth or to remove a dead fetus. | Reported Induced Abortions |
| Wyoming | "Abortion" means an act, procedure, device or prescription administered to or prescribed for a pregnant woman by any person with knowledge of the pregnancy, including the pregnant woman herself, with the intent of producing the premature expulsion, removal or termination of a human embryo or fetus, except that in cases in which the viability of the embryo or fetus is threatened by continuation of the pregnancy, early delivery after viability by commonly accepted obstetrical practices shall not be construed as an abortion | https://casetext.com/statute/wyoming-statutes/title-35-public-health-and-safety/chapter-6-abortions/section-35-6-101-definitions |
Each day, volunteer interns on the Maternal Health Team will help us browse and document Induced Terminations of Pregnancy (ITOP) cases at the county level and by the categorical breakdowns listed in the Data Inventory. Interns will be on the weekly rotation schedule to switch from data entry and data quality task to ensure all data are entered accurately and timely. During data entry week, interns will be browsing through primary source and transfer/document those number into the state spreadsheet. During data quality week, interns will confirming of completion of the spreadsheet, determine the accuracy of the data entered, and fix any errors that they have find.
Interns collect data from health department sites at both state and county levels, listed breakdown below:
As seen in the list above, states are unique in both how they report their data and what data they report.
‘NA’ indicates that the data is not available. ‘NR’ indicates that the data are not reported by the state dashboard.
‘SUPPRESSED’ indicates that the data for the county is suppressed due to patient confidentiality concerns, or ‘due to the number being below a certain amount’ (generally counts less than 20). Note: county totals are not displayed for confidentiality reasons but they are still part of the overall state count.
In order to ensure accurate reporting of data, we avoided using zeros in our datasets unless it was explicitly stated and/or present within the original source. If we didn’t see a zero, or a note about suppressing counts due to low numbers, we assumed the data was not reported and inputted an ‘NR’ value.”
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##Contributors Sarwat Siddiqui, Brenna Jarvis, MPH, Fu Zeng, MPH, Devin Friedman, MPH, Tracy Flood, MD, PhD. A full list of the Broadstreet Covid-19 Data Project volunteers can be found here: https://covid19dataproject.org/team-2/