October 13, 2007 – The Lancet published a comment by Ibis board member Beth Fredrick written in response to new research on worldwide abortion rates and trends from the Guttmacher Institute and the World Health Organization published in the same issue. In her piece, Ms. Fredrick argues that we are not doing enough to stop unsafe abortion and need to invest in legal, policy, and health care reform as well as bolster advocacy efforts.
“In all of the data, one fact stands out: safe and legal abortion saves women’s lives and protects their health. There is no acceptable reason to allow women to die, fall ill, or become infertile as a result of unsafe abortion when the world community has both the knowledge and the means to prevent these deaths.”
Ms. Fredrick is the executive vice president of the International Women’s Health Coalition. View Lancet comment (registration required).