Rapid repeat pregnancies are common after abortion of a first pregnancy, according to a new study of over two million young women. This finding is consistent with data showing that 29% of women undergoing an abortion have a strong desire for a "replacement pregnancy." But since the same pressures to abort may persist, approximately 60% of pregnancies conceived in the two years following a first abortion are also aborted.
Examining data from every state that includes abortion coverage for Medicaid patients, researchers found that among young women who aborted a first pregnancy, 22.6% and 34.5% conceived a second pregnancy within one year and two years of their abortions, respectively. These rapid repeat pregnancy rates were significantly higher than those for women experiencing a miscarriage or other natural loss, among whom 17.8% and 25.6% conceived again within one and two years, respectively.