Recent abortion statistics in Poland show that the number of terminated pregnancies is approaching levels seen before the restrictive ruling by the Constitutional Tribunal, which effectively limited women's access to legal abortions.
Before the introduction of restrictive abortion laws, around a thousand Polish women legally terminated their pregnancies each year. We are now approaching that figure again.
The daily Rzeczpospolita noted that in 2023, 425 legal abortions were performed in Poland, indicating a more than threefold increase compared to 161 abortions in 2022.
As highlighted by rp.pl, recent changes in abortion statistics are due to medical professionals increasingly adhering to a less-utilized interpretation of the Tribunal's ruling, which allows mental health issues to be a grounds for a legal abortion.
At present, legal abortions are permitted only in two situations: when the pregnancy threatens the woman’s health or life, or when there is a credible suspicion that the pregnancy resulted from rape.
Feminist groups in Poland responded to the recent statistics.
"Only one abortion out of several hundred takes place within the Polish system"
"These are the official data we obtained from the Ministry of Health for 2023: three times more abortions than in 2022. However, the network Aborcja bez Granic performs more abortions in four days than the Polish state does in a year. Only one abortion out of several hundred takes place within the Polish system," reports on X.com @LegalnaAborcja (famous for advocates for the right and local access to free and safe abortions in Poland).
Guidelines for prosecutors on abortion
Prime Minister Donald Tusk has announced that new guidelines for prosecutors on abortion cases, prepared by Justice Minister Adam Bodnar, will be released on Monday, according to a report by polskieradio24.pl. Those guidelines have still not been released.
Source: IAR/rp.pl/polskieradio24.pl/x.com/@LegalnaAborcja_
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