The 1st look at Maine’s abortion data after a controversial Democratic expansion

Maine saw a year-over-year increase in the number of abortions performed in 2023 along with a noticeable but still statistically small jump in those performed after 20 weeks on the heels of a controversial law passed by Democrats.

The state posted the latest annual figures online this week. They come after Gov. Janet Mills approved bills last year to expand abortion access, including a measure allowing doctors to perform abortions they deem necessary after viability — a threshold that normally begins around 24 weeks. That law was in effect for a little more than two months of last year.

The news: There were 13 abortions after 20 weeks last year, which was a jump from just three performed in 2022. But that was out of 2,500 abortions overall, and 75 percent of those came before nine weeks. It underscores the rarity of abortions so late in pregnancies and is consistent with national rates.

The total number of abortions was 12.4 percent higher than the 2,225 abortions performed in 2022, while 2021 and 2020 had 1,915 and 2,064 abortions, respectively.

Mainers got 95 percent of those abortions in 2023. The next highest total of 85 performed on patients from neighboring New Hampshire. The various abortion access laws the Legislature and Mills approved in 2023 included a limit on collecting certain demographic data for abortions, such as race and marital status.

The context: The post-viability law was the biggest legislative fight in 2023. Democratic leaders narrowly locked down the necessary votes in the House of Representatives after shutting down a floor session for hours. Anti-abortion advocates flooded the State House for a public hearing that lasted 19 hours, longer than any other one in recent memory.

Mills campaigned for reelection in 2022 by saying she wanted no changes to abortion laws, as did many anti-abortion Republicans. But she floated the bill shortly afterward, saying she was moved by the story of a Yarmouth woman who had to travel to Colorado for an abortion after learning at 32 weeks that her fetus had an anomaly that would kill it shortly after birth.

She said the law was aimed at those “rare and heartbreaking circumstances.” But the anti-abortion right was incensed, saying it was “an abortion-on-demand bill.”

What they’re saying: The increase in abortions in the last three years is consistent with national trends since Roe v. Wade was overturned by the Supreme Court in 2022, said Lisa Margulies, a spokesperson for Planned Parenthood of Northern New England.

Margulies also attributed the increase to several other factors, such as lawmakers removing financial barriers for abortions through MaineCare coverage and passing a “shield” law this year that protects out-of-state patients who come here from legal action in conservative-led states.

“Mainers don’t have to endure unnecessary emotional, physical, psychological and financial harm that comes from being forced to leave the state for the medical care they need,” she said of the environment following last year’s law.

Leaders with the anti-abortion Christian Civic League of Maine did not immediately comment Wednesday on the 2023 data.

What’s next: Abortion remains a crucial issue nationally ahead of the Nov. 5 election between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump. Two years after the high court’s conservative majority cemented by Trump overturned federal abortion rights, one poll released Monday showed abortion is now the top issue for women under 30.