of Vermont 2021 abortion statistics was published online as part of the state’s full vital statistics report for September 2023. The report is available on the Vermont Department of Health website.
There were 1,033 abortions reported in Vermont on 2021a decrease of 16% from last year (Figure 1). Chemical abortions are down 20%, from 926 in 2020 to 743 in 2021. The Charlotte Lozier Institute (CLI) estimates Vermont’s abortion rate is down 17% to 8.6 abortions per 1,000 women of age 15 to 44 (Fig. 2).1 Of the 39 states that reported abortion statistics for 2021, 12 states (including Vermont) reported a decrease in abortions.
State Report Summary
In 2021, 79% of abortions reported in Vermont were performed on state residents, while 21% were performed on non-resident women, including 13% on women from New Hampshire. Eleven percent of abortions in Vermont were performed on girls age 19 or younger (with 4% on girls under 18). Twenty-eight percent were performed on women ages 20 to 24 and 24% on women ages 25 to 29. One-third of abortions were performed on women ages 30 to 39. Four percent were on women age 40. or older.
Eighty-eight percent of abortions occurring in Vermont were performed on white women, 5% on black women, and 3% on Asian or Pacific Islander women. There were three abortions among American Indian women and 14 among women of other races. Race was not reported for 2% of abortions. The CLI estimates that Vermont’s black abortion rate (21.8 abortions per 1,000 women ages 15 to 44) is 2.6 times the white abortion rate (8.3).
More than half (52%) of Vermont abortions were performed on childless women. Twenty percent were among women with one child, and 28% were among women with two or more children. Twenty percent of abortions are performed on married or divorced women. Seventy-five percent were among unmarried women, and 6% were among women whose marital status was unknown.
Twenty-eight percent of abortions in Vermont were among women who had a high school diploma as their highest level of education. Thirty-seven percent of abortions were among college-educated women, with 18% among women with one to three years of college and another 19% among women with four or more years. Six percent were conducted among women with less than a high school education. Education was not reported for 29% of abortions.
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Seventy-four percent of abortions in Vermont are performed before nine weeks of pregnancy. Thirteen percent were done between nine and 10 weeks, and 4% each occurred between 11 and 12 weeks and 13 and 15 weeks of pregnancy. Three percent reported from 16 to 20 weeks. Sixteen abortions, 1.5% of the total, were performed at 21 weeks of gestation or later.
Most of Vermont’s abortions, 72%, are chemical. Twenty-one percent were suction curettage procedures, and 7% were performed using other methods. Eighty-nine percent of abortions took place in abortion clinics, while 9% took place in hospitals and 2% in doctor’s offices. Planned Parenthood operates all brick-and-mortar abortion centers in Vermont, with three out of four Planned Parenthood centers in the state performing abortions. However, it is not clear how many abortions are reported by virtual centers and online abortion pill distributors in the state or whether they are included in the total number of abortion clinics.
Legislative Changes
As CLI previously mentionedThe Article 22 Amendment/Prop 5 is on the Vermont ballot in November 2022. The amendment pass with a vote of 77% (yes) to 23% (no), with every town in the state having a majority of yes votes. Proposal 5 amends the Vermont state Constitution “to ensure that every Vermonter is granted personal reproductive liberty.”
In May 2023, Republican Governor Phil Scott signed two “shield laws” (HB 89 and S.37) that use various legal enforcement mechanisms to protect providers from prosecution for performing abortions on women from states where abortion is prohibited. HB 89 also attempts to keep abortion pills available in Vermont even after the FDA revoked approval of the drug mifepristone (one of two pills commonly used for medical abortion) as a result of Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine v. FDA case. S.37, perhaps the most notable, examines the ability of Vermont’s pregnancy centers to advertise and offer non-medical services, information, and counseling unless provided by a licensed health care provider. The state, under its consumer protection regulations and subject to Vermont’s interpretation pro-abortion attorney general, can also fine centers for what the AG deems false and misleading advertising.
State Ranking
In 2016, CLI reviewed abortion reporting throughout the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and New York City. Vermont’s reporting tied for 31St best. Because Vermont uses state funds to pay for abortions for Medicaid-eligible women, the state can report the method of payment for each abortion. Vermont can also report whether any abortions resulted in complications and the reasons women had abortions.
- National rates are calculated by the Guttmacher Institute. Vermont’s rates are calculated by the CLI using the following formula: (total number of abortions performed in Vermont ÷ number of female residents ages 15-44 [based on most recent population estimates]) x 1,000. Rates may vary slightly from previous CLI articles due to revised population estimates. Population estimates were obtained from CDC WONDER. Estimates for 2005-2009 are intercensal estimates of July 1 resident population. Estimates for 2010-2019 are Vintage 2020 postcensal estimates of July 1 resident population. Estimates for 2020 -2021 are Vintage 2022 postcensal resident population estimates as of July 1. Population estimates are produced by the US Census Bureau and the National Center for Health Statistics.
