Iowa’s 2023 vital statistics report, which includes the state’s abortion statistics, was published online by the Iowa Department of Public Health in January 2025. In what follows, 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 Iowa 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 Iowa 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 Iowa to obtain abortions and their states of residence, as well as the number of abortions obtained by Iowa 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.
Iowa’s statute code defines abortion as “the termination of a human pregnancy with the intent other than to produce a live birth or to remove a dead fetus” (Iowa Code §146E.1).
Statistics and Changes in Iowa Abortions, 2022-2023
The report does not include information on Planned Parenthood’s Iowa abortion market share.
Abortion Totals and Trends
There were 2,771 abortions reported in Iowa in 2023, down 32% from 2022. Drug-induced abortions decreased by 35% but still composed 70% of the total in 2023 (Fig. 1). CLI estimates that Iowa’s abortion rate decreased by 32% to 4.6 abortions per 1,000 women ages 15 to 44 (Fig. 2).1 As of February 2025, 28 states have released 2023 abortion reports, with 13 showing decreases in abortion totals from the previous year.
State Report Summary
Eighty-nine percent of Iowa abortions were performed on resident women, while 11% were obtained by nonresidents. The number of nonresident women obtaining abortions in Iowa decreased from 2022 when 19% of Iowa’s abortions were obtained by nonresidents. Twelve percent of the abortions were performed on girls younger than 20, including 4% on girls under the age of 18 and 8% on girls between the ages of 18 and 19. Thirty-one percent of Iowa abortions were performed on women ages 20 to 24, and 27% on women ages 25 to 29. Twenty-seven percent were performed on women in their thirties, and 3% on women ages 40 and older. Five abortions were performed on women of an unknown age.
A majority of Iowa abortions, 60%, were obtained by white women. Twenty-three percent were performed on African American women, and 3% on Asian women. One percent of the abortions were performed on Native American women and six abortions were performed on Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander women, while 7% were performed on women of multiple races and 6% on women of other or unknown races. CLI estimates that Iowa’s black abortion rate was 20.2 abortions per 1,000 women ages 15 to 44, almost seven times the white abortion rate of 3.1.
Forty-six percent of Iowa abortions were performed on women who had completed at least some college, and 51% of the abortions were performed on women with nine to 12 years of school as their highest level of education. One percent of the abortions were obtained by women with fewer than nine years of education, while education status was not reported for 26 abortions. Eighty-eight percent of Iowa abortions were performed on unmarried women, while 12% were performed on married women. Marital status was not reported for three abortions.
A large majority of Iowa abortions were drug-induced (70%). Thirty percent were surgical, and zero were performed using some other means. Ninety percent of the abortions reported in Iowa occurred in the first trimester, at or before 13 weeks of gestation. Ten percent of the abortions were performed between 14 and 28 weeks of gestation. Zero abortions were reported at 29 weeks or later. The month of January had the most abortions (349), while November had the fewest (178).
2023 Guttmacher Data2
In 2023, Guttmacher estimated that 4,050 abortions occurred in the state, while the state reported a total that was 46% lower than Guttmacher’s. Of those 4,050 abortions, an estimated 270 were obtained by Nebraska women who traveled to Iowa to get an abortion. Additionally, Guttmacher estimated that 960 Iowa women traveled to other states to obtain abortions. Of those 960 abortions, 410 were obtained by Iowa women in Minnesota, 370 in Illinois, and 180 in Nebraska.
Breakdown of Abortion Providers in Iowa3
| # of brick-and-mortar locations | 4 |
| # of independent centers | 1 |
| # of Planned Parenthood centers | 3 |
| # of hospitals/doctors’ offices that perform abortions | 0 |
| # of abortion drug providers | 4 |
| # of abortion drug-only providers | 2 |
| # of surgical and abortion drug providers | 2 |
| # of online mail-order abortion drug companies licensed in the state | 4 |
| # of brick-and-mortar locations that also mail abortion drugs | 0 |
| Latest gestational age that a center performs surgical abortion | Through 5 weeks |
Legislative Changes
Iowa’s heartbeat law, originally signed into law on July 14, 2023, but subsequently blocked on July 17, 2023, went into effect on July 29, 2024 and remains in effect. Iowa’s heartbeat law prohibits abortion after an unborn child’s heartbeat can be detected except in cases where a mother’s life or physical health is endangered by the pregnancy or in cases of rape and incest. Before the law went into effect, abortion remained legal in Iowa up to 22 weeks of gestation, with it being legal to that point for the entirety of 2023 (except the three days the heartbeat law was briefly in effect in July of 2023).
State Ranking
In 2024, CLI published a paper reevaluating states’ abortion reporting across the country, with Iowa tied for 27th best. To improve its reporting, Iowa could report gestational age with more specificity instead of grouping together 14 weeks into one range, as CLI has previously recommended. Additionally, Iowa could collect and report abortion complication data, particularly from emergency rooms and other urgent care settings.
- National rates were calculated by the Guttmacher Institute. Iowa rates were calculated by CLI using the following formula: (total number of abortions performed in Iowa ÷ 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. Rates for 2023 were calculated using the Vintage 2022 postcensal estimates because 2023 population estimates have not yet been released by the CDC.
- 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 self-managed abortions or those obtained by women in pro-life states under shield laws.
- Center 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.
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