Abortion

Access to abortion services is an important aspect of a woman’s ability to control her reproductive health and plan her life. But numerous obstacles stand in the way of a woman’s ability to receive safe, affordable, high-quality abortion care, from restrictive policies and outright bans on abortion, to a dearth of providers. Unsafe abortion kills nearly 47,000 women each year around the world and many more experience significant morbidity that affects their lives and health. Legal restrictions often leave women without options, forcing them to turn to unsafe providers or methods if they wish to end a pregnancy. However, even where abortion is legal, many women cannot access or afford safe, high-quality abortion care.

Work to increase access to abortion is Ibis’s top priority. We prioritize the following: documentation of the impact of coverage bans and other restrictions on abortion; clinical and social science research focused on identifying ways to improve second-trimester abortion services; evaluation of new, women-centered models for increasing abortion access and improving quality of care; and alliance-building with maternal health networks and advocates to put safe abortion on the maternal health agenda. Our vision of abortion care is that it is affordable, accessible, safe, high quality, and responsive to women’s priorities.