Texas abortion rate lower than national average

Texas has a lower abortion rate than the national average, which has been declining for decades.

Driving the news: Texas' abortion ban is the most restrictive in the country, making the procedure illegal after six weeks.

• The law does not allow for exceptions due to rape or incest and allows for people to sue anyone suspected of helping another get an abortion.
• And, a so-called "trigger law" making performing an abortion a felony in Texas would go into effect in 30 days if the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade.

Flashback: Nearly 1,400 Texans traveled out of state for an abortion each month between September — when the restrictive abortion law went into effect — and December.

• That's nearly equal to the total number of Texans who left the state each year to obtain abortions between 2017 and 2019.

The big picture: The abortion rate is the highest among women in their 20s, but the overall rate has been declining for years, especially among teens, according to the Guttmacher Institute.

• In Texas, there are 9.5 abortions per 1,000 women aged 15-44. Nationally, that rate is 13.5.

Yes, but: The overall birth rate is also declining, particularly among teens, according to Guttmacher.

• In Texas, the teen pregnancy rate dropped to 39 per 1,000 people aged 15-19 in 2017, compared to a rate of 116 per 1,000 in 1988.

Zoom in: In 2020, 58% of women who received an abortion were in their 20s and were disproportionately Black, according to a report released by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission.

• 84% were unmarried, 63% were receiving their first abortion and 39% hadn't given birth before.
• Nearly a quarter had given birth once before, 21% had had two previous live births and 16% had three or more, reports Axios' Caitlin Owens.