Abortion Reporting: Delaware (2022)

Delaware’s 2022 abortion report was published online by the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services in January 2025. The report shows that abortions decreased in 2022 from 2021. Below, Charlotte Lozier Institute (CLI) summarizes the information in the abortion report published by the state. The data published by the state does not include the total number of abortions obtained by Delaware residents out of state or the number of self-managed abortions on women outside of the healthcare system. It is also unlikely that the report contains the number of mail-order abortion drugs obtained by Delaware residents prescribed by licensed abortion providers in other states. In a separate section, CLI will describe data provided by the Guttmacher Institute’s Monthly Abortion Provision Study that details the number of women who traveled to Delaware to obtain abortions and their states of residence, as well as the number of abortions obtained by Delaware women in other states. Guttmacher’s abortion estimates include the number of abortions obtained at brick-and-mortar facilities and those provided via telehealth and virtual providers in the United States.

Statistics and Changes in Delaware Abortions, 2021-2022

The report does not include information on Planned Parenthood’s Delaware abortion market share.

Abortion Totals and Trends

There were 2,445 abortions reported in Delaware in 2022, an increase of 34% from 2021. Drug-induced abortions also increased, rising by 44% to 1,760 in 2022 and making up 72% of all abortions reported in Delaware (Fig. 1). CLI estimates that Delaware’s abortion rate was 13.0 abortions per 1,000 women ages 15 to 44, up 32% from the previous year (Fig. 2).¹

State Report Summary

In 2022, 90% of Delaware abortions were performed on state residents. Five percent were performed on Maryland women and 3% on Pennsylvania women. One percent each were performed on New Jersey women and women from other states.

Ten percent of abortions reported in Delaware were performed on girls younger than age 20, an increase of 65% from 2021. This included 3% performed on girls under the age of 18. Twenty-nine percent of the abortions were on women in their early twenties, and 28% on women in their later twenties. Twenty-nine percent of the abortions were obtained by women in their thirties, and 3% were obtained by women ages 40 and older.

Fifty-three percent of Delaware abortions were performed on black women, even though black women composed just 28% of Delaware women ages 15 to 44. Forty-five percent of the abortions were performed on white women and 2% on Asian women. Fourteen abortions were performed on women of other races and one was performed on an American Indian woman. CLI estimates that Delaware’s black abortion rate was 24.6 abortions per 1,000 women of childbearing age, almost three times the white abortion rate of 9.3. Seventeen percent of the abortions were performed on Hispanic women and 83% on non-Hispanic women.

Five percent of Delaware abortions were obtained by women who had not graduated from high school, 39% by high school graduates, and 15% by women who had completed one to three years of college. Nine percent of the abortions were performed on women with four or more years of college. Education was not reported for 33% of abortions.

Nine percent of the abortions reported in 2022 were performed on married women, and 91% were performed on unmarried women. Seventy percent of the abortions were performed on women who had previous pregnancies, while 30% were performed on women who had no previous pregnancies. Forty-two percent of the abortions were obtained by women with no previous live births, compared to 24% obtained by women with one live birth and 34% by women with two or more live births. Sixty-five percent of the abortions were performed on women who reported zero prior abortions. Twenty-two percent were performed on women with one prior abortion and 12% on women with more than one previous abortion.

Twenty-one percent of resident abortions were performed on women from Kent County, 60% on residents from New Castle County, and 18% on residents from Sussex County.

A majority of the abortions reported in Delaware (72%) were drug-induced, and 12% were suction curettage procedures. Fifteen percent of the abortions were performed via other unspecified procedures in 2022, while the type of procedure was not reported for 1% of the abortions. The number of unspecified abortions increased from three in 2021 to 362 in 2022. Thirty-two percent of the abortions occurred earlier than seven weeks of gestation (approximately five weeks post-fertilization), and 34% were performed between seven and eight weeks. Twenty percent were reported between nine and 10 weeks, 5% between 11 and 12 weeks, and 6% from 13 to 15 weeks of gestation. One percent were performed between 16 and 20 weeks and another one percent were performed at 21 weeks of gestation or later. The number of abortions performed at 21 weeks or later increased by 118% from 2021 to 2022. Thirty-one abortions were performed at unknown gestational time periods. To see how the number and percentage of abortions changed by gestational weeks from 2021 to 2022, see the following table:

2023 Guttmacher Data²

In 2023, Guttmacher estimated that 3,520 abortions occurred in Delaware. Also in 2023, an estimated 1,060 Delaware women traveled to other states to obtain abortions. Following is a breakdown of the number of abortions by the states that Delaware women traveled to:

• Maryland – 460 abortions
• Pennsylvania – 310
• New Jersey – 290
• Total – 1,060

Guttmacher additionally estimated that 110 of the 3,520 abortions performed in the state in 2023 were performed on Pennsylvania residents and 120 were performed on Maryland residents. It is important to note that Guttmacher only includes resident estimates for counts over 100.

Breakdown of Abortion Providers in Delaware³

State Ranking

In 2024, CLI published a paper reevaluating abortion reporting requirements across the country, with Delaware ranking as tied for 31^st place. Since Delaware abortion centers have operated in unsafe conditions in the past, Delaware could improve its reporting by collecting and reporting data on complications resulting from abortion. Delaware could also report the percentage of abortions performed at each of four operational facilities in the state.

1. National rates were calculated by the Guttmacher Institute. Delaware rates were calculated by CLI using the following formula: (total number of abortions performed in Delaware ÷ number of resident women ages 15-44 [based on most recent population estimates]) x 1,000. Rates may differ slightly from previous CLI articles due to revised population estimates. Population estimates were obtained from the CDC WONDER database. Estimates for 2005-2009 are intercensal estimates of the July 1 resident population. Estimates for 2010-2019 are Vintage 2020 postcensal estimates of the July 1 resident population. Estimates for 2020-2022 are Vintage 2022 postcensal estimates of the July 1 resident population. Estimates were produced by the U.S. Census Bureau and the National Center for Health Statistics.
2. The Guttmacher Institute notes that their monthly abortion totals by states are estimates and that each state’s estimate is within a range of uncertainty. Guttmacher also notes that their estimates do not reflect abortions obtained by women in pro-life states under shield laws in effect in pro-abortion states. This information is updated as of January 14, 2025.
3. Provider totals do not include hospitals or physician offices not listed in databases that compile abortion provider locations in different states, but do include Planned Parenthood locations, independent abortion centers, and hospitals/doctor’s offices included in databases like Abortion Finder and Ineedana. This information is updated as of February 7, 2025.
4. Delaware did not report the number of drug-induced abortions performed in 2009 and 2010 in its state reports or in the data it shared with the CDC.

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