Utah’s abortion rate has dropped to its lowest ever since the state began keeping records in 1975.
The number of women in Utah who had an abortion in 2013 was 2,893, that is 4.6 women in every 1,000, the Salt Lake Tribune reports.
Utah’s abortion statistics have been in decline from a high of 11.1 per 1,000 in 1980.
Several reasons could be behind the downward trend. There are more restrictive abortion laws in the state — including one that imposes a waiting period of 72 hours.
But Laurie Baksh from Utah’s Department of Health cites economics as a possible reason for lower abortions, saying people are thinking about the financial realities of raising a child.
More Must-Reads From TIME
- LGBTQ Reality TV Takes on a Painful Moment
- Column: How the World Must Respond to AI
- What the Debt Ceiling Deal Means for Student Loan Borrowers
- India’s Female Wrestlers Are Saying #MeToo
- 7 Ways to Get Better at Small Talk
- Florence Pugh Might Just Save the Movie Star From Extinction
- The End of Succession
- Scientists Get Closer to Harnessing Solar Power From Space
