Skip to the story
All StoriesPoliticsConflict & SecurityBusiness & EconomyScience & TechHealthClimateMedia
All stories
Health7 outlets ran this3 min read

Abortion bans linked to higher health insurance costs for women, study finds

University of Michigan research associates state bans with increased premium expenditures, particularly for Black and Hispanic women.

AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made

Published
Credit: Following NYC from Pexels

What this story says

  • State abortion bans are associated with a 5.4% increase in annual out-of-pocket health insurance premium expenditures for women, according to a University of Michigan study.
  • The study found a 12.8% increase for Black women and a 13.7% increase for Hispanic women.
  • Research indicates a 2.6 percentage-point rise in private health insurance coverage among women of reproductive age in states with abortion bans.
  • The findings suggest that abortion bans may impose costs on women and families through the healthcare system itself.

Who covered it

Left 86%(6)Centre 14%(1)Right 0%(0)

Percentages are shares of the 7 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. Coverage measured .

Trust

86/100

Craft

87/100

Hype

15/100

7 sources · methodology

Thin on the right so far

None of the 7 outlets with a published leaning rating that ran this story are rated right.

This story is still being watched, so it is a count and not yet a finding. Coverage keeps arriving for hours after an event, and a side that has published nothing this morning may publish by tonight. If it is still true when we stop checking, we will say so plainly.

State abortion bans implemented after the Supreme Court's 2022 Dobbs decision are associated with increased health insurance costs for women, a preliminary study from the University of Michigan suggests. The research found these bans correlate with a 5.4% rise in annual out-of-pocket health insurance premium expenditures for women. This increase was more significant for Black women, with an estimated 12.8% rise, and Hispanic women, with a 13.7% rise.

The study also identified a 2.6 percentage-point increase in private health insurance coverage among women of reproductive age in states that have enacted abortion bans. Researchers used nationally representative data from the Current Population Survey Annual Social and Economic Supplement, covering 2018 through 2024, and examined approximately 60,000 women aged 18 to 44.

According to Joelle Abramowitz, an associate research scientist at U-M's Institute for Social Research, the increased costs are linked to higher birth rates and more complicated pregnancy-related outcomes resulting from abortion bans. These outcomes strain the healthcare system, leading insurers to pass costs onto families through higher premiums. Abramowitz stated that the consequences of abortion bans extend beyond access to abortion, potentially imposing costs through the healthcare system.

Coverage comparison

What the coverage left out

None of the left- or centre-rated reports mentioned the specific methodology used to identify the 2.6 percentage-point rise in private health insurance coverage among women of reproductive age in states with abortion bans.

Tags:#AbortionBans#HealthcareCosts#HealthInsurance#ReproductiveRights#UniversityOfMichigan

Still developing. We have re-checked which outlets are covering this 4 times, most recently on 6 Oct 2026, 23:15, and will add the sides that appear.

How each side covered it

Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.

Left

6 rated outlets

  • The left-rated reports focused on the increased costs for women, particularly those of colour, resulting from state abortion bans. Headlines highlighted that women in states with bans bear higher health insurance costs. The digests noted the 5.4% increase in annual premium expenditures for women, with specific mention of the higher increases for Black and Hispanic women. The connection between abortion bans and increased healthcare expenses was a central theme.

Centre

1 rated outlet

  • The centre-rated report from Medical Xpress led with the finding that state abortion bans make health care more expensive. It detailed the 5.4% increase in annual out-of-pocket premium expenditures for women, and the higher percentages for Black and Hispanic women. The report also noted the 2.6 percentage-point rise in private health insurance coverage in states with bans. The full report quoted Joelle Abramowitz, stating that abortion bans are a 'kitchen-table issue, adding costs to family budgets'.

Right

0 rated outlets

No outlet rated right has run this story so far. We are still checking, and will say plainly if that does not change.

Questions about this coverage

How did the left and right cover Abortion bans linked to higher health insurance costs for women, study…?
Of the 7 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 86% are rated left, 14% are rated centre, 0% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
Is Abortion bans linked to higher health insurance costs for women, study… left or right?
Too few of the outlets on this story carry a published leaning rating to say. 7 of them do, and this site does not characterise a field under 12: at that size one newsroom filing moves the share by ten points. The percentages above are the count as it stands.
Is the coverage of Abortion bans linked to higher health insurance costs for women, study… biased?
Abortion bans linked to higher health insurance costs for women, study finds is one event reported by 7 outlets, and this page does not rate the story as biased or unbiased. What it publishes is the spread: which outlets ran it, where named rating organisations place each of them on the spectrum, and what each side chose to lead with. A leaning rating describes an outlet's record over time, not this article, and the two should not be run together.
Which side is not reporting Abortion bans linked to higher health insurance costs for women, study…?
When we first saw this story, outlets rated right had barely covered it. Coverage accretes for hours after an event, so that is where to look rather than a verdict — the split above is the current count, and it is the one to read.
Which outlets covered Abortion bans linked to higher health insurance costs for women, study…?
7 that we know of, every one of them listed further up this page with a link to its own report and to what we hold on the publisher. Nothing here is a summary of somebody else's summary: the outlets are named so the original reporting can be read.
What did the University of Michigan study find about abortion bans and health insurance costs?
The study found that state abortion bans are associated with a 5.4% increase in annual out-of-pocket health insurance premium expenditures for women. For Black women, the increase was 12.8%, and for Hispanic women, it was 13.7%.
How did abortion bans affect health insurance coverage according to the study?
The research indicated a 2.6 percentage-point rise in private health insurance coverage among women of reproductive age in states that have implemented abortion bans.
Who conducted the research on abortion bans and health insurance costs?
The preliminary research was conducted by the University of Michigan's Institute for Social Research. Joelle Abramowitz and Olga Aristova are named as researchers involved in the study.

Read it at the source

7 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.

Left

6

Centre

1

Right

0

No outlet in this group ran the story.

Not rated

0

No outlet in this group ran the story.

How did this read?

About the coverage, not about the story. We do not ask whether you agree with what happened — we have no honest use for that answer.

More in Health

All Health →
Doctors and insurers sue California over new healthcare tax3 min readDoctors and insurers sue California over new healthcare taxRead storyFILE: Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores wave after his swearing-in ceremony for a third term in Caracas, Venezuela. /AP2 min readCilia Flores has heart condition, son says; US denies house arrestRead story

Elsewhere on the site

Supreme Court hears Boulder climate change lawsuit against energy companiesClimate•4 min readSupreme Court hears Boulder climate change lawsuit against energy companiesAppeals court hears challenge to block on RFK Jr.'s vaccine panel appointeesPolitics•3 min readAppeals court hears challenge to block on RFK Jr.'s vaccine panel appointeesVoting rights groups prepare for election interferencePolitics•1 min readVoting rights groups prepare for election interferenceTrump considering federal gas tax suspensionPolitics•3 min readTrump considering federal gas tax suspension
Abortion bans and health insurance costs | MediaBias News