Abortion Reporting: Nebraska (2023)

Nebraska’s 2023 abortion report was published in June 2024 on the newly released electronic dashboard of the state’s Department of Health and Human Services. The data shows that abortions decreased in the Cornhusker state.

Statistics and Changes in Nebraska Abortions, 2022-2023

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

Abortion Totals and Trends

In 2023, there were 2,325 abortions reported in Nebraska, a decrease of 9% from the 2,547 reported the previous year. Drug-induced abortions increased by 2% from 1,864 in 2022 to 1,907 in 2023, making up 82% of all abortions in the state (Fig. 1). Nebraska’s abortion rate decreased by 9% to 6.1 abortions per 1,000 women of childbearing age, according to estimates by the Charlotte Lozier Institute (CLI) (Fig. 2).¹ As of November 2024, 21 states have released 2023 abortion statistics, and 12 states reported that abortions decreased from 2022.

State Report Summary

In 2023, 79% of the abortions reported in Nebraska were performed on state residents, while 21% were performed on women from other states, a percentage breakdown identical to that in 2022. The biggest increase (49%) of abortions performed on women from other states were performed on Iowa women. However, the number of abortions performed on women from Kansas, Missouri, and Texas—the three states that had significant increases in the number of out-of-state women who obtained abortions in Nebraska in 2022—decreased in 2023. The decreases in Missouri and Texas women seeking abortions in Nebraska in 2023 could be partially explained by Nebraska’s enactment of a 12-week abortion limit in May 2023. Abortion in Nebraska in 2022, by contrast, wasn’t limited until 22 weeks of gestation, while Texas and Missouri prohibited abortion except in limited cases almost immediately after the Dobbs decision in June 2022.²

Eleven percent of Nebraska abortions were performed on girls younger than 20, and 58% were obtained by women in their twenties. Twenty-nine percent of Nebraska abortions were performed on women in their thirties, and 3% on women ages 40 and older.

In 2023, 45% of the abortions were performed on white women, and 15% on black women. Three percent were on Native American women, and another 3% on Asian women. One percent of the abortions were performed on women of other races. The significant decreases in the percentage of abortions performed on white and black women from 2022 can be explained by the 34% of abortions performed on women of an unknown race in 2023. CLI estimates that the black abortion rate of 15.6 was five times higher than the white abortion rate of 3.2. Despite the incomplete data provided by the state, this trend of the Nebraska black abortion rate being significantly higher than the white abortion rate mirrors an identical national trend in every state that reports such data. Typically, Nebraska also reports on the ethnicity of women who obtained abortions in the state, but the 2023 report contained almost 2,000 abortion forms with women of unknown ethnicity so no accurate numbers and conclusions can be drawn from this data.

Similar to its racial data, there was a high number of abortions performed on women of unknown educational status (32%). Six percent of the abortions were performed on women without a high school diploma while 35% were performed on women with a high school diploma or its equivalent. Seventeen percent of abortions performed in Nebraska were on women who had completed some college courses while 9% were on women with a college degree.

Sixty-seven percent of the abortions were performed on women who had been pregnant before. Thirty percent of the abortions were on women who had previously had an abortion, with 20% on women with one prior abortion and 10% on women with more than one. Forty-four percent of women who obtained abortions in Nebraska had zero previous live births, while 21% had one previous live birth. Thirty-five percent had two or more previous live births. Sixty-eight percent of the abortions were performed on unmarried women, and 11% were on married or separated women. Marital status was not reported for 21%.

Two dilation and evacuation (dismemberment) abortions and zero dilation and extraction abortions (the procedure used in partial-birth abortion) occurred in 2023. One potential reason for zero dilation and extraction abortions being performed in 2023 (versus the 82 performed in Nebraska in 2022) could be that the abortionist, Leroy Carhart, who performed these abortions passed away in April 2023. The majority of abortions reported in Nebraska (82%) were drug-induced. Eighteen percent of the abortions were conducted via suction curettage. One sharp curettage abortion was performed, and two additional abortions were performed using another, unspecified method.

In 2023, abortion in Nebraska was permitted until 20 weeks post-fertilization (approximately 22 weeks of gestation) until May 22 when, as mentioned above, the state’s 12-week abortion law went into effect. The 12-week law remains in effect. To see how the 12-week law impacted when abortions occurred in gestation throughout 2023 compared to 2022, see the following table:

The postfertilization age (PFA) was determined for all 2,325 abortions. For 35% of the abortions, the PFA was determined using an abdominal ultrasound, while a general ultrasound was used in 65% of the abortions. An unknown method of determination was used for three abortions.

The 2023 Nebraska report states that 13 doctors performed abortions in the state that year.

In 2023, Nebraska abortions occurred in three counties: Douglas County, where one of the state’s two Planned Parenthoods is located; Lancaster County, where the other Planned Parenthood is located; and Sarpy County, where an abortion center once owned by the recently deceased and above-mentioned late-term abortion provider, Leroy Carhart, is located. Despite his death, the clinic remains open. The table below illustrates how the state’s new 12-week law and Carhart’s passing changed the performance of abortion by county from 2022 to 2023.³

Women undergoing abortions in Nebraska are asked to share their reasons for seeking abortion, and each woman may provide multiple reasons. In 2023, 23% of the women declined to give an answer. Seven percent of all women getting abortions were seeking an abortion due to contraceptive failure, and 12% did not use contraception. Forty-two percent of abortions were performed for socioeconomic reasons and 8% were performed due to the woman’s mental health. Only five percent were performed due to physical health concerns. There were 22 abortions performed to preserve the life of the mother, 17 abortions performed in the case of sexual assault, 16 performed because of the presence of a fetal anomaly, and two abortions performed in the case of incest. Twelve abortions occurred because of an unspecified “emergency situation.”

Fifty-six percent of the unborn babies killed by abortion were less than 60 millimeters long (approximately 2.4 inches), while 2% were 60 millimeters or longer. Forty-two percent of the babies could not be measured. Fifteen percent of the babies weighed less than 100 grams, and 3% weighed 100 grams or more. Eighty-two percent could not be measured.

In 2023, parental consent for abortion was obtained for 71 minors and not obtained for one. An exception to the parental consent requirement was made in three cases. There were 12 cases in which Nebraska’s informed consent requirements were waived due to an unspecified emergency. Despite there being fewer abortions in 2023 than in 2022, there were 12 abortion-related complications reported in 2023 while only five were reported in 2022.⁴ There was one infection, 10 cases of retained products of conception, and one unspecified complication.

Abortions by Month

State Ranking

In CLI’s updated 2024 evaluation of abortion reporting across the country, Nebraska’s reporting was ranked as tied for 4^th best. To enhance its abortion reporting, Nebraska could improve its abortion complication data collection and reporting as well as specify if drug-induced abortions were performed in office or via the mail. Furthermore, the state could report the number of abortions by facility. Lastly, in years past, Nebraska has struggled to collect and release complete demographic data, with high percentages of unknown abortions in the respective demographic categories (education, race, ethnicity, and marital status). Nebraska should continue to work on resolving this issue.

1. National rates were calculated by the Guttmacher Institute. Nebraska rates were calculated by CLI using the following formula: (total number of abortions performed in Nebraska ÷ 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.
2. The state’s 12-week law contains exceptions to preserve the life and/or physical health of the mother and in the cases of sexual assault or incest.
3. The report does not indicate whether all abortions were performed in the three abortion centers located in their respective counties or if some occurred in hospitals or doctor’s offices, so it isn’t possible to ascertain the number of abortions by center.
4. Statistics on abortion complications reported here represent a minimal number of deaths and complications as this data is collected in a non-systematic and non-verifiable way. As such, this data cannot be used to calculate either an accurate abortion mortality rate or an accurate abortion complication rate for the state.

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