Domestic Abuse And Abortion Bans Create ‘A Very Dangerous Recipe’ Post-Roe

A new report analyzes survivors' experiences with reproductive coercion, intimate partner violence and the threat of criminalization.

A new report highlights the connection between abortion access and intimate partner violence since the Supreme Court repealed federal abortion protections two years ago.

The report, conducted by the National Domestic Violence Hotline in collaboration with If/When/How, surveyed over 3,400 people between October and December 2023. The organizations wanted to learn more about survivor experiences with reproductive coercion, intimate partner violence and the threat of criminalization in a post-Roe v. Wade world (though, not all domestic violence experiences included in the survey happened during the survey window). Reproductive coercion and reproductive abuse are umbrella terms that describe situations including when an abusive partner controls pregnancy outcomes, coerces someone into unprotected sex or tampers with birth control methods, among other tactics.

The survey found that 63% of all respondents were pressured or forced into having sex with a current or former partner when they didn’t want to, and nearly 40% said their partner threatened them if they said no to sex. Around a quarter reported that their partner pressured them into becoming pregnant, and 13% said their partner used or threatened violence while they were pregnant with the intention of ending the pregnancy. More than 30% of respondents said they do not have access to an OB-GYN or physician who focuses on reproductive health. The survey was conducted on the Hotline’s website and all responses were anonymous.

“When you have a country that has now allowed abusive partners to be completely emboldened in restricting access to health care, in allowing someone to feel like they cannot control their own bodies, and when the states and the country decides to say, ‘Actually, no, your bodies aren’t your own.’ It is a very dangerous recipe, and the findings underscore that,” Crystal Justice, the chief external affairs officer at the National Domestic Violence Hotline, said in a Monday press briefing.

Abortion access and intimate partner violence are inherently linked because pregnancy is an extremely dangerous time for victims of intimate partner violence. Murder by an abusive partner is the leading cause of death for pregnant and postpartum women in the U.S. ― outpacing medical issues like sepsis and hemorrhage.