Internet Searches for Abortion Medications Shatter Records Following Supreme Court Draft Ruling
What were the effects of the leaked draft ruling of the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) that would overturn Roe v. Wade?
A new JAMA Internal Medicine study, led by John W. Ayers of the Qualcomm Institute (QI) and School of Medicine at UC San Diego and Adam Poliak of Bryn Mawr College, finds evidence of record high interest in abortion medications in wake of the leak.
Identifying Trends in Demand for Abortion Medications
The research team analyzed Google search queries from the United States that mentioned “abortion pill” or specific medication names (mifepristone/mifeprex, misoprostol/cytotec) from January 1, 2004, through May 8, 2022. These included queries like “how to get misoprostol,” “order abortion pills” or “buy mifepristone.”
“As abortion policies change and new laws are enacted, research tracking the needs of the public in near real time must be prioritized to inform responsive public health strategies,” said Ayers. “Investments in public health surveillance systems tracking abortion-related needs could become integral to supporting women’s rights.”
“Discussing abortion openly is not something many are eager to do,” said co-author Eric Leas, a QI affiliate and assistant professor in the UC San Diego Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science. “But searching online is anonymous. By examining aggregate internet searches, decision makers can understand the needs of the public based on the content and timing of their queries.”
Evaluating trends before and after the SCOTUS draft opinion was leaked, the team discovered that internet searches for abortion medications reached record national highs, and searches were more common in states with more restrictive reproductive rights.
Searches for abortion medications spiked the hour Politico published the leaked draft SCOTUS ruling online with searches 162 percent higher during the 72-hour period following the leak compared to before. Moreover, searches for abortion medications were substantially higher than ever recorded (since January 1, 2004).
In practical terms, during the week of the SCOTUS ruling alone there were an estimated 350,000 searches for abortion medications in the United States.
There were significantly more searches (after adjusting for population size) in states with more restrictive reproductive rights in the 72-hour period following the leak. States given failing grades (F) by the Institute for Women’s Policy Research’s “Reproductive Rights Index” had 163 percent more searches than states with an A letter grade. The institute assigns each state a letter grade based on access to abortions, public funding for abortions, percent of women living in counties with an abortion services clinician, and other attributes.
“In states with restrictive reproductive rights and where abortion will likely become criminalized, women appear more likely to search for abortion medications in the wake of the SCOTUS leak,” added Poliak. “Although abortion medications require a prescription, women may be attempting to stockpile medication or hazardous black-market options in anticipation of curtailed access.”
A Call to Action to Address Women’s Health
“Elevated interest in abortion medications should alert physicians that many of their patients may ultimately pursue abortions with or without them,” said study coauthor Davey Smith, a physician-scientist and chief of the UC San Diego Division of Infectious Disease and Global Public Health.
“Failure to meet the needs of online searchers may result in more unsafe abortion attempts,” noted study coauthor Steffanie Strathdee, distinguished professor in the UC San Diego Division of Infectious Disease and Global Public Health. “Already 7 percent of women of reproductive age have attempted a self-managed abortion in their lifetimes and that figure could be on the rise following the SCOTUS decision.”
The team notes informing people about how they can legally and safely obtain abortion medications is one strategy to prevent a rise in unsafe abortion attempts. “Accessible information about abortion medications should be prioritized online; including encouraging evidence-based telehealth for those seeking abortion medications,” said study coauthor Nora Satybaldiyeva, a doctoral student at UC San Diego. “Providing abortion medications via telehealth under the care of a physician is a safe alternative to in-person care, especially for women in states where abortion will be illegal.”
In addition to Poliak, Staybaldiyeva, Strathdee, Lees, Smith and Ayers, authors of the JAMA Internal Medicine study, “Internet Searches for Abortion Medications Following the Leaked Supreme Court of the United States Draft Ruling,” include Ramesh Rao, director of the Qualcomm Institute.
A version of this story was first published on Eurekalert, a science news distribution service.