By the Numbers: Exactly How Common Are Abortions In Colorado?

With the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade, you might be wondering exactly how common abortion is in Colorado.

Abortions On The Rise In Colorado

According to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment,  the number of abortions performed in Colorado has been on the rise over the last 5 years. In 2016, there were 8,333 abortions performed in the state, which was the lowest number since 2002. In 2021, there were a reported 11,598 abortions in Colorado.

Highest Colorado Abortion Rates Are On the Front Range

In Colorado, as one might expect, the counties with the highest abortion rates were on the front range. Denver County tops the list with 1,176 abortions followed by El Paso (1,030) Arapahoe (944) and Adams County (722). Mesa County ranked 12th in the state with 112 abortions in 2021, right behind Garfield County with 128.

Get our free mobile app

Colorado Abortion History

A historical look back shows how trends have changed over the years. The biggest year on record in Colorado was 1984 when more than 17,000 abortions were performed in the state. After that, there was a steady decline in the numbers, bottoming out in 2000 with 4,215 abortions in Colorado. However, over the next five years, the number of abortions more than doubled to 11,622.

Although exact numbers seem to be hard to come by, the CDC reports there were 626,898 abortions nationwide in 2020. The Guttmacher Institute says the number is just over 930,000.

Out-of-Staters Coming To Colorado

The number of abortions in Colorado is likely to go up as women from other states cross state lines to terminate pregnancies. Last year, more than 1,500 abortions were performed on people coming from other states. Colorado is considered a "safe haven" state, having passed legislation this year that guaranteed the right to an abortion.

A couple of statistics that might be of interest to you from 2021. In Colorado, 87% of abortions involved pregnancies estimated to be at 10 weeks or less. Just 1.5% were performed after 20 weeks. In terms of ages,  87% of women who got abortions were aged 20-39 and 7% were aged 18-19.