• For every five children born in Delaware, two are aborted. From 2000-2005, the last years for which we have data, Delaware had an average of 11,196 live births and 4,559 abortions.
  • Delaware’s abortion rate is nearly 50% higher than the national average. In 2005, Delaware had 28.8 abortions per 1,000 women of reproductive age (15-44), nationally there were 19.4 abortions per 1,000 woman of reproductive age.
  • Delaware has the fifth highest per-capita abortion rate in the nation. In 2005, only four states had abortion rates higher than Delaware’s 28.8 abortions per 1,000 women of reproductive age.
  • People are coming to Delaware to have abortions. More than one out of every four women who get an abortion in Delaware is from out of state. From 2000-2005, an average of 1,290 of the 4,559 abortions per year were obtained by out-of-state women.
  • Delaware has the third highest rate of abortion among children age 15-17. In 2000, there were 24 abortions per 1,000 women ages 15-17, the third highest in the nation.

Abortion disproportionately victimizes the African American community in Delaware.

  • African Americans make up 21% of Delaware’s population, yet 40% of the state’s abortions are performed on African-American women. In 2005, more African-American babies were killed in Delaware than the total number of African-American deaths from all other causes combined. 1,274 African Americans were aborted in Delaware in 2005, while there were 1,235 African-American deaths from all other causes in the same year.
  • The percentage of Delaware pregnancies ending in abortion in the black community is twice the rate of those ending in abortion in the white community. In 2005, 30.4% of pregnancies in the black community ended in abortion versus 16.7% in the white community.
  • Nationally, more African-American babies have been killed by abortion since 1973 than the total number of African-American deaths from AIDS, violent crimes, accidents, cancer, and heart disease combined.

Other Statistics

  • In Delaware a child needs a parent’s permission to get her ears pierced, but can have an abortion without a parent’s consent. 
  • In 2009, Delaware's General Assembly passed a law requiring girls under the age of 18 to get their parents' permission to use a tanning booth, but a 16 year old can get an abortion without her parents being notified or consulted. 
  • Due to a court order, Delaware is one of only 14 states that allow abortion at any point in pregnancy, including the ninth month, and after viability.
  • Delaware’s 24-hour waiting period for an abortion was ruled unconstitutional by a federal court.
  • Delaware currently does not require abortion providers to inform the mother that the child may feel pain, about assistance available for prenatal care, childbirth, and infant care, and the possible psychological impact of abortion.