Study: Anti-abortion states are losing residents
Across Idaho and 12 other states that quickly enacted abortion bans over two years ago, more than 36,000 residents move away per quarter, a new study estimates.
“The effects are more prominent for single-person households than for family households, which may reflect larger effects on younger adults,” found the study, released this month as a working paper by the National Bureau of Economic Research that hasn’t been peer reviewed.
Using data as recent as early 2023, the study tracked population shifts in 13 states — including Idaho — that enacted abortion bans immediately after the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2022 decision overturning national abortion protections in Roe v. Wade through the case Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization.
Researchers used change-of-address data from the U.S. Postal Service. The study compared “net population outflows” between states with abortion bans to 25 states that either maintained or protected abortion access following the Supreme Court decision.
How have abortion bans affected Idaho’s fast-population growth?
In a news release, a Planned Parenthood affiliate covering Idaho claimed the study findings show the number of Idaho residents who moved out of state, compared to the number of new residents moving to Idaho, nearly tripled. That reversed trends from before, the release said.
“These policies force people to carry pregnancies against their will, criminalize health care providers for doing their jobs, and create a chilling effect on all forms of medical care,” Rebecca Gibron, CEO of Planned Parenthood Great Northwest, Hawai‘i, Alaska, Indiana, Kentucky, said in the news release. “It’s no surprise that young people — and providers — are leaving states that prioritize control and punishment over care and compassion. States like Indiana, Kentucky, and Idaho are risking their entire health care infrastructure, and that will harm every patient who needs care, not just those seeking an abortion.”
Study co-author Jason Lindo, professor of economics at the Georgia Institute of Technology, told the Idaho Capital Sun in an email that the study doesn’t report state-specific estimates.
Planned Parenthood affiliate Communications Director Krista Pedersen told the Sun in an email that the group calculated the state-level figures using data from the report.
In the past year, Idaho’s fast-growing population appeared to grow slower, U.S Census Bureau estimates released in December show. But Idaho is still among the fastest growing states in the nation.
Idaho’s abortion ban laws appear set to remain unchanged by state lawmakers this year, as lawmakers await the results of lawsuits challenging the bans.
, Gov. Brad Little told reporters last week.
Kyle Pfannenstiel is a reporter for the Idaho Capital Sun, covering health care and state politics. He previously reported for the Post Register/Report for America, Idaho Education News and the Idaho Press. Kyle is a military brat who calls Idaho home. He has a bachelor’s degree in journalism and political science from University of Idaho.
