Background The economic consequences of abortion care and abortion policies for individuals occur directly and indirectly. We lack synthesis of the economic costs, impacts, benefit or value of abortion care at the micro-level (i.e., individuals and households). This scoping review examines the microeconomic costs, benefits and consequences of abortion care and policies. Methods and findings Searches were conducted in eight electronic databases and applied inclusion/exclusion criteria using the PRISMA extension for Scoping Reviews. For inclusion, studies must have examined at least one of the following outcomes: costs, impacts, benefits, and value of abortion care or abortion policies. Quantitative and qualitative data were extracted for descriptive statistics and thematic analysis. Of the 230 included microeconomic studies, costs are the most frequently reported microeconomic outcome (n = 180), followed by impacts (n = 84), benefits (n = 39), and values (n = 26). Individual-level costs of abortion-related care have implications for the timing and type of care sought, globally. In contexts requiring multiple referrals or follow-up visits, these costs are multiplied. The ways in which people pay for abortion-related costs are diverse. The intersection between micro-level costs and delay(s) to abortion-related care is substantial. Individuals forego other costs and expenditures, or are pushed further into debt and/or poverty, in order to fund abortion-related care. The evidence base on the economic impacts of policy or law change is from high-income countries, dominated by studies from the United States. Conclusions Delays underpinned by economic factors can thwart care-seeking, affect the type of care sought, and impact the gestational age at which care is sought or reached. The evidence base includes little evidence on the micro-level costs for adolescents. Specific sub-groups of abortion care-seekers (transgendered and/or disabled people) are absent from the evidence and it is likely that they may experience higher direct and indirect costs because they may experience greater barriers to abortion care.

Background Despite the high incidence of abortion around the globe, we lack synthesis of the known economic consequences of abortion care and abortion policies at the mesoeconomic level (i.e. health systems and communities). This scoping review examines the mesoeconomic costs, benefits, impacts, and values of abortion care and policies. Methods and findings Searches were conducted in eight electronic databases. We conducted the searches and application of inclusion/exclusion criteria using the PRISMA extension for Scoping Reviews. For inclusion, studies must have examined at least one of the following outcomes: costs, benefits, impacts, and value of abortion care or abortion policies. Quantitative and qualitative data were extracted for descriptive statistics and thematic analysis. Of the 150 included mesoeconomic studies, costs to health systems are the most frequently reported mesoeconomic outcome (n = 116), followed by impacts (n = 40), benefits (n = 17), and values (n = 11). Within health facilities and health systems, the costs of providing abortion services vary greatly, particularly given the range with which researchers identify and cost services. Financial savings can be realized while maintaining or even improving quality of abortion services. Adapting to changing laws and policies is costly for health facilities. American policies on abortion economically impact health systems and facilities both domestically and abroad. Providing post-abortion care requires a disproportionate amount of health facility resources. Conclusions The evidence base has consolidated around abortion costs to health systems and health facilities in high-income countries more than in low- or middle-income countries. Little is known about the economic impacts of abortion on communities or the mesoeconomics of abortion in the Middle East and North Africa. Methodologically, review papers are the most frequent study type, indicating that researchers rely on evidence from a core set of costing papers. Studies generating new primary data on mesoeconomic outcomes are needed to strengthen the evidence base.

Background Although abortions are a common aspect of people’s reproductive lives, the economic implications of abortion and the stigmas that surround abortion are poorly understood. This article provides an analysis of secondary data from a scoping review on the economic impact of abortion to understand the intersections between stigma and economics outcomes at the microeconomic (i.e., abortion seekers and their households), mesoeconomic (i.e., communities and health systems), and macroeconomic (i.e., societies and nation states) levels. Methods and findings We conducted a scoping review using the PRISMA extension for Scoping Reviews. Studies reporting on qualitative and/or quantitative data from any world region were considered. For inclusion, studies must have examined one of the following microeconomic, mesoeconomic, or macroeconomic outcomes: costs, benefits, impacts, and/or value of abortion-related care or abortion policies. Our searches yielded 19,653 items, of which 365 items were included in our final inventory. As a secondary outcome, every article in the final inventory was screened for abortion-related stigma, discrimination, and exclusion. One quarter (89/365) of the included studies contained information on stigma, though only 32 studies included stigma findings directly tied to economic outcomes. Studies most frequently reported stigma’s links with costs (n = 24), followed by economic impact (n = 11) and economic benefit (n = 1). Abortion stigma can prevent women from obtaining correct information about abortion services and laws, which can lead to unnecessary increases in costs of care and sizeable delays in care. Women who are unable to confide in and rely on their social support network are less likely to have adequate financial resources to access abortion. Conclusions Abortion stigma has a clear impact on women seeking abortion or post-abortion care at each level. Programmatic interventions and policies should consider how stigma affects delays to care, access to accurate information, and available social and financial support, all of which have economic and health implications.

Background Although abortion is a common gynecological procedure around the globe, we lack synthesis of the known macroeconomic costs and outcomes of abortion care and abortion policies. This scoping review synthesizes the literature on the impact of abortion-related care and abortion policies on economic outcomes at the macroeconomic level (that is, for societies and nation states). Methods and findings Searches were conducted in eight electronic databases. We conducted the searches and application of inclusion/exclusion criteria using the PRISMA extension for Scoping Reviews. For inclusion, studies must have examined one of the following macroeconomic outcomes: costs, impacts, benefits, and/or value of abortion care or abortion policies. Quantitative and qualitative data were extracted for descriptive statistics and thematic analysis. Of the 189 data extractions with macroeconomic evidence, costs at the national level are the most frequently reported economic outcome (n = 97), followed by impacts (n = 66), and benefits/value (n = 26). Findings show that post-abortion care services can constitute a substantial portion of national expenditures on health. Public sector coverage of abortion costs is sparse, and individuals bear most of the costs. Evidence also indicates that liberalizing abortion laws can have positive spillover effects for women’s educational attainment and labor supply, and that access to abortion services contributes to improvements in children’s human capital. However, the political economy around abortion legislation remains complicated and controversial. Conclusions Given the highly charged political nature of abortion around the global and the preponderance of rhetoric that can cloud reality in policy dialogues, it is imperative that social science researchers build the evidence base on the macroeconomic outcomes of abortion services and regulations.

The availability of a variety of modern contraceptive methods is necessary but insufficient to provide a high-quality contraceptive service to postabortion clients. Women, especially young women, must be empowered to make informed choices about which methods they receive, including whether to use contraception following an abortion service. In this study, we conducted 2,488 client exit interviews with abortion clients after their induced abortion service or postabortion care visit in Ipas-supported health facilities in eight countries: Argentina, Bolivia, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mexico, Nepal, Nigeria, and Uganda. We evaluated the quality of postabortion contraceptive counseling across two domains of contraceptive counseling: information exchange and interpersonal communication. We measured the association between these quality elements and two outcomes: 1) client-perceived choice of contraceptive method and 2) whether or not the client received a modern contraceptive method. We examined these relationships while adjusting for sociodemographic and confounding variables, such as the client feeling pressure from the provider to accept a particular method. Finally, we determined whether associations identified differ by age group: under 25 and 25+. Information exchange and interpersonal communication both emerged as important counseling domains for ensuring that clients felt they had the ability to choose a contraceptive method. The domain of information exchange was associated with having received a contraceptive method for all abortion clients, including young abortion clients under 25. Nearly 14% of clients interviewed reported pressure from the provider to accept a particular contraceptive method; and pressure from the provider was significantly associated with a client’s perception of not having a choice in selecting and receiving a contraceptive method during her visit to the facility. Improving interpersonal communication, strengthening contraceptive information exchange, and ensuring clients are not pressured by a provider to accept a contraceptive method, must all be prioritized in postabortion contraceptive counseling in health facilities to ensure postabortion contraceptive services are woman-centered and rights-based for abortion clients.