Abortion in the US: Divisive, Controversial, and Impacting Society - Essay Sample

Introduction

In the United States, abortion is a divisive and controversial issue in politics, culture, and society. Abortion is the process of terminating a pregnancy deliberately mostly done at the early stages. From the recent statistics reports that in 1000 women between the age of 15 and 44 years, there are 11.6 abortions (Jones & Jerman, 2017). This number had reduced from the incidents reported between 1997 and 1998 when the country recorded the highest number of abortions. Various anti-abortion policies have been enacted in the USA to ensure safety, accessibility, and to reduce the number of abortions in the country. However, despite the implementation of the laws, other policies have been put in place to allow women to access abortion services at the point of need. As a result, there has been a challenge in reducing the number of abortions in the country. The risk to maternal health, inability to cater for a child, and the age of the mother are some of the reasons why people have abortions in the United States. Some amendments can be made to the abortion policies to help reduce the prevalence in the country.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

Risk of Maternal Health

Among the factors that contribute to the high number of abortions in the USA is the risk of the mother's health. The US government has legalized abortion if the health of the mother is at risk. For instance, mothers with chronic diseases such as cardiac issues, hypertension, and diabetes are allowed to have an abortion to protect their health status (Berer, 2017). Such women may experience difficulties while giving birth, which may result in their death or that of the infant. Additionally, such women may have problems while carrying the pregnancy, which puts their lives in danger. At such points, abortion becomes the only option to protect the lives of mothers. Policies that allow such kind of abortions base their arguments on the importance of the two subjects involved. Notably, the mother, whose life has already started, is more significant than the unborn child. Therefore, the rules support the survival of the mother and forsake the unborn child, thus legalizing abortion in such cases.

In a bid to reduce the abortions, various changes can be made to the policies that allow the mothers at health risk to terminate the pregnancy. For instance, the federal government should clearly outline the health conditions that enable a woman to access abortion services. As a result, there will be a reduction in the number of abortions since women without severe conditions will carry on with the pregnancy. Additionally, the policies should be amended to include a recommendation from a qualified medical practitioner for abortion to be carried out. Therefore, the physician should test the woman to determine their ability to carry the pregnancy and the effects it could have on their health. Upon realization of the situation, the doctor should determine if there are other options apart from abortion. Through this process, the physician helps to reduce the number of abortions by having it as the last option. Primarily, a doctor's thorough investigation of the women's conditions will help to reduce the abortions that result from the risk of maternal health.

Inability to Cater to the Child

Some women terminate the pregnancy since they cannot afford to take care of the child due to financial and economic status. In the USA, approximately 21% of women have abortions since they cannot provide the child (Roberts et al., 2017). In the country, all children have the right to access all support from their parents. Therefore, if the woman or parents are not in a position to provide such to their children, they opt to abort the pregnancy before childbirth. Additionally, the level of income of the parents may trigger the decision to terminate the pregnancy. Low income earning parents may not have enough resources to cater to the child's needs, thus prompting their decision to conduct the abortion. Unpreparedness for the pregnancy also triggers the parents to terminate it. The inability to take care of the child during and after pregnancy prompts some parents to have an abortion.

The policies that legalize abortion in such cases should be amended to help reduce the prevalence. For instance, the policies should be changed to include the vetting of the parent's capability to take care of the child. This vetting will allow the government to reduce the number of abortions whose victims can provide for the child. Additionally, the policies should set a standard below which the abortion can be allowed. Therefore, parents who are above the standard measures are restricted from terminating the pregnancy. Ideally, setting the minimum standards to guarantee abortion helps to reduce the number of abortions by limiting the undeserving parents from terminating the pregnancy.

The Maternal Age

The age of the pregnant woman is another factor that significantly contributes to the high number of abortions in the United States. In the country, approximately 12.2% of the abortions result from too young parents, mostly in schools (Kung et al., 2018). The policies in the US allow parents to have children at the age of 16 and above. Therefore, if the pregnant woman is below 16 years, they could have an abortion to allow them to attain the childbearing age. In the country, young children are at the risk of getting pregnant, thus increasing the number of abortions.

In a bid to reduce such cases, the policies should be amended to ensure more restrictions on abortion. For instance, the policies that allow abortion for parents below childbearing ages should be abolished. The abolishment will help to increase the caution among the children to avoid getting the children at the early stages. Additionally, the policies should be changed to allow children below 16 years to access contraceptives that would help to reduce such pregnancy cases. Primarily, improving the accessibility of contraceptives among young children helps to reduce the number of abortions that result from young children by reducing the chances of getting pregnant before the recognized childbearing age.

Conclusion

Abortion is a controversial issue in the United States that should be cautiously addressed by both the federal and states government. The legalization of abortion in certain instances has led to a significant increase in the number of terminated pregnancies in the country. Therefore, there is a need for several changes in the policies to help reduce the prevalence of abortion cases. For instance, the laws that allow abortion when maternal health is at risk should be changed to include a thorough investigation of other options. As a result, abortion will be considered the last option in such cases. Additionally, the policies should also be amended to set a standard of the capability of the parent to bring up a child. Through this strategy, the government will help to reduce the abortion cases that result from the inability of the parents to take care of the child. Furthermore, the laws should be amended to allow the accessibility of contraceptives to young people to help the reduction of pregnancies from children below the childbearing age. Ideally, the power of reducing the number of abortions in the US is in the hands of changing the federal and states policies that allow abortion in some circumstances.

References

Beger, M. (2017). Abortion law and policy around the world. Health and Human Rights. 19(1). 13-27. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5473035/

Jones, R., & Jerman, J. (2017). Population group abortion rates and lifetime incidence of abortion: united states, 2008-2014. American Journal of Public Health. https://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/10.2105/AJPH.2017.304042

Kung, S., Darney, B., Saavedra-Avendano, B., Lohr, P., & Gil, L. (2018). Access to abortion under the health exception: a comparative analysis in three countries. Reproductive Health. 15, (107). https://reproductive-health-journal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12978-018-0548-x

Roberts, S., Fuentes, L.,& Dennis, A. (2017). A 21st -Century public health approach to abortion. American Journal of Public Health. 107(12), 1878-1882. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5678382/