ABORTION LAW REFORM ASSOCIATION OF NEW ZEALAND

19 June 2013

As Abortion Decline Continues, Let’s Boost Support for Contraception

Better contraception appears to be playing a role in the continued decline in abortions, but much more can be done to make the newer contraceptives accessible and affordable, president of the Abortion Law Reform Association of New Zealand, Dr. Morgan Healey, said today.

Abortion figures for 2012 released today by Statistics NZ show there were 14,745 abortions in New Zealand, down 1,118 on 2011 and cementing a now 5-year downward trend.

“Anecdotal evidence about rising use of long-acting reversible contraception (LARCs) together with today’s statistics suggest these new methods may be helping to reduce unintended pregnancy and abortion,” Dr. Healey said.

“We’d like to see more research that could confirm these links, but in the meantime ALRANZ renews its call for the government to ensure contraception is affordable and accessible for those who want it,” she said.

Though sales data is commercially sensitive, Bayer NZ did confirm to ALRANZ this week that use of its LARCs – including Mirena and Jadelle – has increased considerably over the last few years, Dr. Healey said.

But while Jadelle has been funded since 2010, Mirena will cost a woman around $320 for contraceptive use. (It is only funded for menstrual bleeding problems.)

ALRANZ National Secretary Annabel Henderson Morrell said spending money on funding contraception and improving contraceptive access was both fiscally smart and socially responsible.

“Statistics show around 50 percent of women having abortions in New Zealand were not using any form of contraception when they got pregnant, something the Abortion Supervisory Committee has said it’s concerned about,” she said. “Making contraception more freely available is the obvious first step in addressing that concern.”

We’ve looked at what’s out there and how much it costs, Ms. Henderson Morrell said (see Contraception Fact Sheet below), and our research clearly shows much more can be done to improve information about and access to contraception.

Other highlights from today’s abortion figures include:

• A continued drop in the abortion rate (abortions per 1,000 women) to 16.1, its lowest since 1995.

• A continued downward trend in abortions among the very young (51 abortions for 11-14 year olds, down from 68 the previous year and continuing a downward trend).

• 55 percent of abortions were performed at 9 weeks of pregnancy or less. (This figure is disappointing.)

• Most abortions – 62.1 percent – were a woman’s first.

For more information about ALRANZ visit www.alranz.org

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