Abortion Rate Declines In Canada; Experts Question Data Collection Method

Main Category: Abortion
Article Date: 25 May 2008 - 0:00 PDT

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A report released by Statistics Canada on Wednesday found that the abortion rate and total number of abortions declined in Canada in 2005, particularly among teenage girls, the CP/Google.com reports. Some experts attributed the decreasing rate in part to sex education programs and increased access to contraceptives (CP/Google.com, 5/21). However, some experts said that the country's "patchy method" of recording abortions means that the report might have not accounted for thousands of abortions, Toronto's Globe and Mail reports (Mick, Globe and Mail, 5/22).

According to the report, the number of abortions in Canada declined by 3.2% from 100,039 in 2004 to 96,815 in 2005. There were 14.1 abortions per every 1,000 women ages 15 to 44 in 2005, compared with 14.6 abortions per every 1,000 women in 2004 (CP/Google.com, 5/21). The data for 2005 continue a five-year decline in Canada's abortion rate, the Globe and Mail reports. The abortion rate decreased the most among women and girls under age 20. The rate declined for every age group except for women ages 35 to 39, which remained the same.

The Statistics Canada report includes abortions performed at hospitals and licensed clinics but does not include procedures performed in doctors' offices or in cases where women privately paid for abortions that are not covered by the provinces, Richard Trudeau, director of health statistics for Statistics Canada, said. "There's more and more literature to indicate that there might be abortions performed in physicians' offices, and those we're unable to monitor," Trudeau said. According to the Globe and Mail, access to abortion services varies throughout Canada.

Reasons for Declining Rate, Comments

Sex education advocates said the report is evidence of the effectiveness of sex education programs and Web sites. Many provinces mandate programs that encourage students to talk about sex and demonstrate how to use condoms (Globe and Mail, 5/22).

According to the CP/Google.com, the teen abortion rate in Canada declined by 6% in 2005, which has followed a decline in the teen pregnancy rate over the last 25 years. "Over the last quarter-century, many more young women have had access to higher education, better employment opportunities," Alex McKay of the Sex Information and Education Council of Canada said, adding, "Women are exercising greater control over their fertility, progressively so and that, with respect to the general health and well-being of women, is a positive signal."

Andre Lalonde of the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada said although the decrease in the number of abortions might seem "to be modest," it is significant "because since 2000 the population has increased" (CP/Google.com, 5/21). However, he added that the number of abortions is still "high for a country like Canada" and that a national strategy to promote condom use and safer sex is needed (Globe and Mail, 5/22). "We'd like to see a figure go way below 50,000 because that means ... men and women in this country would protect themselves and decrease or eliminate unwanted pregnancies," he said (CP/Google.com, 5/21).

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