Abortions sought by out-of-state patients in CT remaining steady

The number of abortions in Connecticut increased slightly from 2023 to 2024, with the average number of monthly abortions rising by 25, an increase of 2%.

But the percentage of abortions provided to out-of-state patients in Connecticut also increased slightly, from 4% to 6%. Compared to all 37 states without abortion bans, the average proportion of out-of-state patients increased from 9% in 2020 to 16% in 2023.

Roe v. Wade, the landmark abortion law, was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2022.

The proportion of patients from New York, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island, states that border Connecticut and where most out-of-state patients to Connecticut come from, remained stable at 5%.

Data suppression rules prevent reporting on any category with fewer than 100 cases. As a result, Connecticut patients from some states may not appear in the dataset. The same suppression rules apply to the total number of abortions provided by clinicians in Connecticut. 

Since 2023, there have been 63 abortion-related legislative actions introduced in Connecticut, according to the Guttmacher Institute. The right to an abortion is protected by law in Connecticut and in nine other states. Other laws protect the privacy of patients seeking abortion.

In 2024, from January to November, the latest month available, there were an estimated 13,830 abortions, an average of 1,257 per month. In 2023, Connecticut recorded a total of 14,790 abortions, with a monthly average of 1,232. The total number of patients who traveled from out of state to Connecticut for an abortion in 2023 is estimated at 840. 

In 2019, there were 11,990 abortions in Connecticut, which dropped to 11,170 in 2020 during the COVID pandemic. However, by 2023, the number had risen to 14,790, a 32% increase from 2020 and a 23.4% increase from 2019. 

In 2023, 72% of abortions in Connecticut were provided via medication. Abortions provided by online-only clinics accounted for an estimated 11% of all procedures in the same year, according to the Monthly Abortion Provision Study from the Guttmacher Institute.