Potential impact of abortion bans on infant health
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RESEARCH HIGHLIGHT
Increased infant mortality has been found to be associated with the passage of an abortion law in Texas.
Gemmill et al. examined the impact of Texas Senate Bill 8 (SB8), believed to represent the most restrictive US abortion law, on infant mortality in Texas. Using a population-based cohort study and comparative interrupted time series analysis, they analyzed national birth and infant death data from 2018 to 2022. They found a 12.9% increase in infant deaths in Texas between 2021 and 2022, higher than the 1.8% increase in the rest of the United States, with 216 excess deaths attributed to SB8. Additionally, there was a notable rise in infant deaths due to congenital anomalies in Texas, in contrast to a decrease in the rest of the United States.
