STATE REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH PROFILE
Mississippi
NATIONAL BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT
Despite the demonstrable importance and ubiquity of contraception, the truth is that ensuring that every pregnancy is wanted and planned is difficult, at both the individual and the societal levels. For the typical American woman to have two children, she will spend about five years pregnant, postpartum or attempting to become pregnant, and three decades�more than three-quarters of her reproductive life�trying to avoid pregnancy. Not all women, however, are successful: About half of all pregnancies in the United States each year�more than three million of them�are unintended. By age 45, more than half of all American women will have experienced an unintended pregnancy, and about one-third will have had an abortion. Nonetheless, contraceptive use can and does dramatically reduce women�s odds of having an unintended pregnancy.
DEMOGRAPHICS
- In 2008, there were 645,400 women of reproductive age (aged 13-44) in Mississippi, 327,800 of whom were in need of contraceptive services and supplies. Of these:
- AGE: 57,400 were under the age of 20 and 270,500 were aged 20-44.
- INCOME: Among women aged 20-44, 61,400 were below 100% of the federal poverty level.
- RACE/ETHNICITY: 179,900 were non-Hispanic white; 134,900 were non-Hispanic black; and 6,100 were Hispanic.
- In 2008, there were 197,700 women in Mississippi in need of publicly supported contraceptive services and supplies. Of these, 57,400 were in need of publicly supported services because they were sexually active teenagers, and 140,400 because they had incomes below 250% of the federal poverty level.
- In 2010-2011, 26% of women aged 15-44 in Mississippi were uninsured, while 16% were enrolled in Medicaid.
For more information, see Contraceptive Needs and Services, 2006
PREGNANCIES, BIRTHS AND ABORTIONS
- In 2008, there were 57,000 pregnancies to the 607,556 women of reproductive age (15-44) in Mississippi; 79% of these pregnancies resulted in live births and 5% in induced abortions.
- In 2006, 65% of pregnancies in Mississippi were unintended. There were 42,000 unintended pregnancies to women in Mississippi, producing a rate of 69 per 1,000 women of reproductive age.
- Of all unintended pregnancies in Mississippi in 2006, 66% resulted in live births and 21% resulted in induced abortions.
- In 2006, 81% of births in Mississippi resulting from unintended pregnancies were publicly funded, compared with 69% of all births and 53% of births resulting from intended pregnancies.
- Of the 31,900 publicly funded births in Mississippi in 2006, 22,200 resulted from unintended pregnancies.
- Births resulting from unintended pregnancies in Mississippi accounted for $136 million in public costs in 2006, including $104 million in federal costs and $33 million in state costs.
- In 2008, 2,770 women obtained abortions in Mississippi, producing a rate of 4.6 abortions per 1,000 women of reproductive age. Some of these women were from other states, and some Mississippi residents had abortions in other states, so this rate may not reflect the abortion rate of state residents. The rate declined 7% since 2005, when it was 4.9 abortions per 1,000 women aged 15-44. Mississippi represents 0.2% of all abortions in the United States.
- In 2005, 7,850 Mississippi residents obtained abortions, producing a rate of 13.0 per 1,000 women of reproductive age.
- In 2008, there were 10,090 pregnancies to Mississippi teens aged 15-19; 71% of these pregnancies resulted in live births and 13% in induced abortions.
- In 2008, 1,320 teens obtained abortions in Mississippi, producing a rate of 12 abortions per 1,000 women aged 15-19.
- In 2008, there were 2 abortion providers in Mississippi. This represents a 0% increase from 2005, when there were 2 abortion providers.
- In 2008, 99% of Mississippi counties had no abortion provider; 91% of Mississippi women lived in these counties.
For more information, see State Facts About Abortion
PUBLICLY FUNDED CONTRACEPTIVE SERVICES
- In 2006 in Mississippi, 172 publicly funded family planning centers provided contraceptive care to 83,900 women�including 23,700 teenagers.
- Family planning clinics in Mississippi served 40% of all women in need of publicly supported contraceptive services and supplies in 2008.
- In Mississippi, $217 in public funds was spent on contraceptive services and supplies per woman in need in 2008.
- In Mississippi, 106 family planning centers that received some support through the federal Title-X family planning program provided contraceptive care to 64,000 women�including 18,200 teenagers in 2006.
- Title-X-supported centers in Mississippi served 31% of all women in need of publicly supported contraceptive services and supplies in 2008.
For more information, see Contraceptive Needs and Services, 2006
IMPACT OF PUBLICLY FUNDED CONTRACEPTIVE SERVICES
- Publicly funded family planning services help women to avoid pregnancies they do not want and to plan pregnancies they do. In 2008, these services helped women in Mississippi avoid 16,600 unintended pregnancies, which would likely have resulted in about 7,400 unintended births and 6,900 abortions.
- Contraceptive services provided at Title X-supported centers in Mississippi helped prevent 12,700 unintended pregnancies, which would likely have resulted in about 5,600 unintended births and 5,300 abortions.
- The services provided at publicly funded family planning centers in Mississippi saved the federal and state governments $31,109,000 in 2008.
For more information, see Next Steps for America's Family Planning Program
STATE POLICIES
Policy Summary Table, as of April 1st, 2013
| ABORTION | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Abortion Policy in the Absence of Roe v. Wade | |
| Abortion would be banned if Roe were overturned |
|
| Pre-Roe abortion ban still in place |
|
| Abortion Counseling and Waiting Periods | |
| Mandated counseling includes information designed to discourage abortion |
|
| State imposes waiting period between counseling and abortion | 24 hours |
| Woman must make two trips: one for abortion counseling and another for the procedure |
|
| Parental Involvement in Minors' Abortions | |
| Parent must consent to an abortion | Both parents |
| Restrictions on Private Insurance Coverage of Abortion | |
| Insurance for state employees restricted | Coverage in limited circumstances |
| Public Funding of Abortion for Poor Women | |
| Public funding is available in cases of life endangerment, rape or incest | Also fetal impairment. |
| Refusal Clauses for Abortion Services | |
| Medical professionals may refuse |
|
| Medical institutions may refuse | All institutions |
| ADOLESCENTS | |
|
|
| Minors' Consent to Contraceptive Services | |
| No policy in effect | |
| Minors' Consent to STI Services | |
| All or some minors explicitly permitted to consent | All minors |
| Parental Involvement in Minors' Abortions | |
| Parent must consent to an abortion | Both parents |
| Sex Education | |
| Sex education must either stress or cover abstinence | Stress |
| STI/HIV education must either stress or cover abstinence | Stress |
| CONTRACEPTION SERVICES AND FINANCING | |
|
|
| Emergency Contraception in Emergency Rooms | |
| No policy in effect | |
| Private Insurance Coverage of Contraceptive Services | |
| No policy in effect | |
| Medicaid Family Planning Expansions | |
| Eligibility for Medicaid family planning based on income | 185% Federal Poverty Level |
| Contraceptive Access in Pharmacies | |
| No policy in effect | |
| Refusal Clauses for Contraceptive Services | |
| Health care providers may refuse |
|
| Pharmacists or pharmacies may refuse | Pharmacies and Pharmacists |
| Medical institutions may refuse | All institutions |
| Minors' Consent to Contraceptive Services | |
| No policy in effect | |
For more information, see State Policies in Brief