Reasons for Past Abortions Among Women in Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder

• Published in: Psychology of addictive behaviors 2024-03, Vol.38 (2), p.193-196
• Main Authors: Harfmann, Roxanne F., Heil, Sarah H., Cannon, Lindsay M., Dalton, Vanessa K., Kusunoki, Yasamin, Kock, Loren S., MacAfee, Lauren K.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Abortion; Abortion, Induced; Adolescent; Adult; Decision Making; Drug abuse; Drug Usage; Drug use; Female; Human; Humans; Induced Abortion; Infants; Middle Aged; Money; Narcotics; Opioid Use Disorder; Opioid-Related Disorders - therapy; Opioids; Pregnancy; Reproductive health; Substance use disorder; Substance Use Treatment; Surveys and Questionnaires; Women; Young Adult
• ISSN: 0893-164X; 1939-1501
• DOI: 10.1037/adb0000959

Objective: The main reasons women in the general population seek abortion are financial, timing, and partner-related reasons. While women with opioid use disorder (OUD) appear to use abortion services more than women in the general population, reasons for abortion in this group have not been examined to our knowledge. Method: Female patients aged 18-50 years in OUD treatment at 22 randomly selected facilities in Michigan were surveyed. The survey included items assessing reproductive health history. Women who reported having one or more abortions were asked to think back to that time and their reasons for choosing abortion. Twenty potential reasons and a write-in option were offered; women could endorse as many as applied. Results: Of 260 women surveyed, 84 reported having an abortion. Of these, most (77.4%) reported multiple reasons for having an abortion. The most common reasons for having an abortion were not having money to take care of a baby (54.8%), feeling too young to have a child and not feeling ready to be a mother (both 42.9%), not loving the father and other partner-related concerns (25.0%-32.1%), and having concerns about the effects of their drug use (28.6%). No combination of reasons for abortion emerged as more prevalent than any other. Conclusions: Like women in the general population, women in treatment for OUD had not only abortions because of financial, timing, and partner-related reasons but also concerns about the effects of their drug use. These results underscore the multiple and often interrelated reasons that lead women to seek abortion. Public Health Significance Statement This study found that, similar to the general population, women in treatment for opioid use disorder reported obtaining an abortion predominantly because they did not have enough money to raise a child, were not prepared to parent a child, and did not love the father or want to stay with the father. Women in treatment for opioid use disorder expressed concerns about drug use affecting the pregnancy. Women who carry unintended pregnancies to term because they cannot access abortion should be offered additional assistance to raise the child.