A new Guttmacher Institute study on abortion in the United States has found that the nation's 30-year decline in abortions has stalled. Within the District of Columbia, however, the abortion rate has dropped precipitously in recent years. From the Washington Post:

While the overall abortion rate remained unchanged, there were significant shifts in individual regions and states. Generally, abortion rates were highest in the Northeast and West and lowest in the South and Midwest. But the rates also vary sharply from state to state. For example, the District's abortion rate plummeted nearly 44 percent, tumbling from 54 to 30 per 1,000 women. The rate in Maryland fell 8 percent (31.5 to 29), while Virginia's rate increased 7 percent (16.5 to 17.6). The D.C. drop was probably because of two clinics closing, which could have contributed to the increase in Virginia as women sought abortions there instead, [Guttmacher senior research associate Rachel] Jones said.

Alternately, women from Virginia who had been traveling to D.C. to receive an abortion may have opted instead to undergo the procedure in their home state. Jones told me that in the past, about 20 percent of abortions in D.C. have been performed on women from out of state; with the closure of several D.C. clinics, Virginia women may be looking to other Virginia counties to secure an appointment.

Notably, while D.C. experienced the most significant drop in abortion providers, the number of clinics declined across the region. From 2005 to 2008, Maryland lost seven abortion providers, Virginia lost six, and D.C. lost four (not two, as reported by the Post). Across the United States, the total number of abortion providers remained steady in that time period.

And now, a snapshot of abortion in the Washington region over the past 38 years:

In the District of Columbia, 15,900—or 10.8 percent—of the 147,193 women of reproductive age (15 to 44) became pregnant in 2008. Of these pregnancies, 58 percent led to births, and 28 percent led to abortions. That year, 4,450 women obtained abortions in D.C., a rate of 29.9 abortions per 1,000 women of reproductive age in the District. That's a 45 percent decrease from 2005, when D.C. recorded 54.2 abortions per 1,000 women in that age range. Note that the abortion rate and the pregnancy rate don't match up exactly: As the study notes, "Some of these women were from other states, and some District of Columbia residents had abortions in other states, so this rate may not reflect the abortion rate of state residents."

Since 1990, the D.C. abortion rate has decreased tremendously; once over 100 points above the national average, D.C.'s rate is now within 10 points of the nation's:

Check out the availability of abortion providers in the District since 1973:

 In 2005, there were 12 abortion providers in the District of Columbia. In 2008, there were 8—a 33 percent drop. (Providers include any place legal abortions are performed: hospitals, abortion clinics, reproductive health clinics, and private physicians' offices). As of 2008, District abortion clinics are at an all-time low since the Roe v. Wade decision. But abortion in D.C. is still more accessible than most jurisdictions: While the total number of abortion providers held steady across the United States, 87 percent of U.S. counties—housing 30 percent of the nation's women—remained without an abortion provider in 2008.

In Virginia. 9.8 percent of women—159,400 of the state's 1,629,744 women of reproductive age—became pregnant in 2008. Of these pregnancies, 67 percent resulted in births and 18 percent resulted in abortions. That year, 28,520 women received abortions in Virginia, a rate of 17.6 abortions per 1,000 women of reproductive age. The abortion rate in Virginia increased 7 percent since 2005, when the abortion rate was 16.5 abortions per 1,000 women.

The U.S. and Virginia abortion rates have largely mirrored one another since 1990:

In Virginia, the number of abortion providers is as low as it's been since the 1970s:

The number of abortion providers in the state declined by 13 percent in recent years, from 46 in 2005 to 40 in 2008. 85 of Virginia counties had no abortion provider. 54 of Virginia women lived in these counties.

In Maryland:130,500 of the state's 1,182,788 women of reproductive age became pregnant in 2008—11 percent of women aged 15 to 44. Of these pregnancies, 59 percent led to births, and 26 percent led to abortions. That year, 34,290 women obtained abortions in Maryland, a rate of 29 abortions per 1,000 women of reproductive age. That marks an 8 percent decrease since 2005, when Maryland recorded a rate of 31.5 abortions per 1,000 women.

Maryland's abortion rate has actually risen since 1990:

 

 

While its abortion providers reach near-Roe levels:

Maryland abortion providers declined by 17 percent in recent years, from 41 abortion providers in 2005 to 34 in 2008. In 2008, 63 percent of all Maryland counties had no abortion provider, representing 20 percent of Maryland women.

It's hard to know exactly what to make of this. From the Guttmacher report's conclusion:

While nationally it would appear that little has changed regarding abortion incidence, abortion is only part of the larger picture of unintended pregnancy, and information on unintended births is also needed. An increase in the rate of unintended births along with the abortion rate would indicate that unintended pregnancy is on the rise. Alternately, if the rate of unintended births decreased, then the slight increase in the abortion rate might indicate that abortion had become more accessible. Between 1994 and 2000, abortion rates increased among poor and low income women, while they decreased among those with higher incomes; the fact that the representation of poor women among abortion patients increased between 2000 and 2008, while the abortion rate declined only slightly during this period, suggests that barriers to abortion services were reduced for this population.

But in D.C., which has a significant population of low-income women—and reported a precipitous drop in the abortion rate from 2005 to 2008—the take-away is even more difficult to discern.