In 1821, Connecticut became the first state to enact abortion legislation for women who had reached quickening, but abortion before quickening did not become illegal in Connecticut until 1860. By the end of the 1950s, however, a large majority of states had banned all abortion except for instances where the woman's life was in danger. Abortion is used primarily as a form of birth control. To choose to have an abortion is a very personal and very private decision, and no one, individual or institution, has the right to question why a woman decides as she does. There are a number of reasons why a woman chooses to have an abortion, including health, family welfare, financial situation, and other personal reasons, but the decision itself is not one that is ever taken lightly.
Abortion is a multi-billion dollar industry.
While there are a number of private clinics that do provide abortion services, the majority of women's health care clinics, providing a spectrum of reproductive and health services, are non-profit and in need of federal funding and general support from the public in order to serve their clients. Not only do these clinics provide a variety of services including gynecological and prenatal exams, and family planning for both men and women, they are also the primary source of health care for millions of women, well over four million of whom rely on federally funded clinics. While anti-choice groups would like people to believe that these clinics are only interested in making money off of abortions, or in costing the taxpayers money by having to pay for those abortions, the truth is that clinics actually save taxpayers money by providing services and education about reproductive freedom in an effort to prevent unintended pregnancies. These unintended pregnancies lead to both unwanted births and abortions, both of which cost private and public money. Abortion is not a multi-billion dollar business, but trying to restrict access to and information about reproductive freedom is costing taxpayers billions.