50% of Ohio Abortion Clinics Have Shut Down Since 2011, Abortions at Historic Lows

Last September, LifeNews.com reported that the number of abortions in Ohio have hit historic lows, as thanks to the work of pro-life laws that have resulted in shutting down abortion clinics that can’t protect women’s health and safety. Now, a new report indicates that half of the abortion businesses that operated in Ohio in 2011 are no longer open — which is news news for women and unborn children.

September’s release of the 2013 Ohio Abortion Report by the Ohio Department of Health showed that abortions last year hit an all-time low of 23,216. That was a 9 percent drop from last year (25,473 to 23,216). That was the lowest level since 1976, when record-keeping first began, and significantly lower (almost 18 percent) than 2010 levels (28,123 abortions).

“Ohio’s continual decline in abortions is representative of an increasingly pro-life culture in our state,” said Stephanie Ranade Krider, executive director of Ohio Right to Life. “We grieve for every life lost to abortion and we are concerned that abortions among African Americans, while lower than last year, are still disproportionately high. We are hopeful that with each passing year, we will find ways to save more and more lives.”

In 2013, four abortion facilities closed across Ohio and those closures have brought the total number of abortion facilities in the Buckeye State to half the 2011 level.

As a new Associated Press survey of abortion facilities reveals:

Seven abortion providers out of 16 have either closed down mills or curbed abortion services since 2011, while an eighth facility – a Toledo-based abortion center – is currently operating amidst litigation.

Currently, nine abortion facilities remain open in the state.

The Associated Press reports the following abortion facility closures in Ohio:

— Center for Women’s Health in Cleveland (2013)

— Center for Choice (2013)

— Capital Care Network (2013)

— A Capital Care Network facility in Columbus (2012)

The following abortion mills curtailed abortion services since 2011:

— Lebanon Road Surgery Center

— Complete Healthcare for Women, in Columbus, also known as the Cleveland Avenue Professional Center

— Northeast Ohio Women’s Center

Ohio Right to Life President Mike Gonidakis applauded the drop, crediting the decline to pro-life legislation and the efforts of crisis pregnancy centers.

“It’s a combination of a lot of things,”Gonidakis told the Associated Press. “Our society’s changing. More and more women are choosing life.”

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“We have to believe that this record-breaking report is directly tied to the efforts of compassionate pro-life Ohioans making a difference in the lives of women and children, and also to the legal protections afforded to children in recent years,” said Krider. “We especially thank Governor Kasich and the leadership of the Ohio House and Senate.”