Illinois continues to stand out as the leading provider of abortion care for out-of-state patients, according to a recent report on national abortion trends by the Guttmacher Institute, a research organization that supports abortion rights.
In 2024, Illinois accounted for 23% of all abortions sought by individuals traveling across state lines for care, surpassing any other state in the U.S.
Following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in 2022, Illinois has established itself as a significant refuge for individuals seeking abortion services, especially those from the Midwest and the South.
Prior to the court’s ruling, a mere fraction of abortions performed in Illinois were provided to out-of-state residents.
However, that number has sharply increased since then, as various states, both nearby and far away, implement strict regulations and near-total bans on abortion.
In Indiana, for instance, a complete ban on abortions was instituted in 2023 with only limited exceptions.
Similarly, Iowa enacted a six-week abortion ban last summer.
Last year alone, Illinois provided 35,000 abortions to out-of-state residents, which accounted for 39% of all abortions performed in the state.
Megan Jeyifo, Executive Director of the Chicago Abortion Fund, emphasized the magnitude of Illinois’s role in addressing the national demand for abortion care in her statement.
Last year, the Chicago Abortion Fund received over 16,000 calls from individuals in 41 different states, ensuring that no one relying on Illinois for care was turned away.
Before Roe was overturned, Planned Parenthood of Illinois noted that patients from outside the state made up only 3%-5% of those receiving abortion care there.
Now, nearly 25% of the organization’s abortion patients hail from other states.
Tonya Tucker, the interim president of Planned Parenthood of Illinois, reported a staggering 47% increase in overall abortion care patients since the Supreme Court’s ruling.
This trend is particularly evident at the Carbondale clinic, where 90% of its patients come from other states, primarily Tennessee and Kentucky.
“It’s clear that abortion bans and restrictions do not lessen the need for abortion care; they merely complicate access for those seeking it,” Tucker remarked.
Planned Parenthood of Illinois has grappled with financial challenges, leading to the closure of clinics in neighborhoods like Chicago’s Englewood and cities such as Ottawa, Decatur, and Bloomington.
The Guttmacher report also highlighted that Illinois not only serves more out-of-state abortion patients than any other state but also provides more than twice the number of abortions compared to the next closest state, North Carolina.
The trend is consistent with the rankings from the previous year, as the top four states providing the highest number of out-of-state abortion patients in 2024 were Illinois, North Carolina, Kansas, and New Mexico.
Despite states like Florida and South Carolina imposing near-total abortion bans, the overall number of abortions performed in the U.S. remained stable from 2023 to 2024, with an increase of less than 1%.
Kimya Forouzan, the principal state policy adviser at the Guttmacher Institute, remarked that the latest data underscores the profound impact of a state’s abortion policies, which resonate well beyond its own borders.
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