The Economic Consequences of Being Denied an Abortion
Abstract
This paper evaluates the financial and economic consequences of being denied an abortion. We link credit report data to the Turnaway Study, which collected high-quality, longitudinal data on women receiving or being denied a wanted abortion in the United States. We compare financial outcomes over a ten-year period for women who had pregnancies just above and below a gestational age limit allowing for a wanted abortion. Outcomes evolved similarly for the two groups prior to the abortion encounter. Following the encounter, women who were denied an abortion experience a large increase in financial distress that remains for several years. (JEL G51, I18, J13, J16)
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The Turnaway Study showed that being denied a wanted abortion was associated with later financial difficulties, including poverty and food and housing insecurity, and greater likelihood of staying with an abusive partner.
“Research from the landmark Turnaway Study, which included participants as young as 15, showed that being denied a wanted abortion was associated with later financial difficulties, including poverty and food and housing insecurity, and greater likelihood of staying with an abusive partner (Foster et al., 2022, Miller et al., 2023, Roberts et al., 2014).”
From The role (and limits) of developmental neuroscience in determining adolescents' autonomy rights: The case for reproductive and voting rights (2024) · cites this paper as Miller et al., 2023
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Maslowsky, J., Buss, E., & Wray-Lake, L. (2024) · Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience · doi:10.1016/j.dcn.2024.101435 · Cited by 8 · see citing works
- Authors
- Miller, S., Wherry, L. R., & Foster, D. G.
- Affiliations
- University of Michigan (US)
- New York University (US)
- University of California, San Francisco (US)
- Venue
- American Economic Journal: Economic Policy
- Publisher
- American Economic Association
- Published
- 2023-02-01
- Volume
- 15
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 394-437
- ISSN
- 1945-7731 (ISSN-L)
- 1945-774X
- OpenAlex
- W3136355610
- Cited by
- 66
- References
- 5
- Citations by year
- 2026: 8 · 2025: 19 · 2024: 26 · 2023: 11 · 2022: 2
- FWCI
- 16.38
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- American Economic Journal Economic Policy (publishedVersion)
- RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Reproductive Health and Contraception
- Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Accounting › Financial Literacy, Pension, Retirement Analysis
- Social Sciences › Gender Studies › Gender, Labor, and Family Dynamics
- Keywords
- abortion, financial distress, credit reports, gestational age limits, women's economic outcomes, abortion access
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