By Maria V. Gallagher, Executive Director, Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation

Nearly half of all abortions in Pennsylvania are repeat abortions, according to figures obtained from the Pennsylvania Department of Health.

The statistics from 2024, the latest year for which stats are available, indicate 49.2 percent of women obtaining abortions have already had one or more abortions.

Tragically, some 2,322 women had had four or more previous abortions.

Experts in post-abortive behavior note that women may be subconsciously reenacting trauma in the hope of finding a resolution.

But abortion does not relieve problems—it only creates more. And it leaves women to grieve the children they have lost.

I cannot begin to imagine what it is like to have lost five or more children to abortion. It is a massive tragedy that, unfortunately, does not get the attention it deserves.

With both material and emotional support, women are far more likely to choose life for their babies, even in the most challenging of circumstances.

Repeat abortions should be treated as a major public health problem in Pennsylvania. Until we treat them as such, the cycle of trauma and despair will continue.