TRAP laws reduce access to obstetricians nationwide

A study in Health Economics uncovers a major unintended consequence of abortion‐related regulations: a measurable decline in the availability of obstetricians and gynecologists.

Since 2010, increasing numbers of states across the US have enacted Targeted Regulation of Abortion Providers (TRAP) laws that require abortion clinics to adhere to stringent and often medically unnecessary standards. By analyzing 2010–2021 data, investigators found that TRAP laws significantly reduced the supply of obstetricians and gynecologists-particularly older and newly trained doctors-without corresponding increases in midwives, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants who practice women's health care. TRAP law enactment was associated with a reduction in more than 2 obstetrician‐gynecologists per 100,000 females aged 15–44 years.

"These findings reveal that abortion restrictions can have much broader effects on maternal healthcare access, raising important considerations for policymakers and healthcare systems nationwide," said corresponding author Quan Qi, PhD, a postdoctoral fellow at Johns Hopkins University, who conducted the research as part of her doctoral dissertation at the University at Albany, State University of New York.