STATE REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH PROFILE
Virginia
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 1,714,300 women of reproductive age (aged 13-44) in Virginia, 915,400 of whom were in need of contraceptive services and supplies. Of these:
- AGE: 129,200 were under the age of 20 and 786,200 were aged 20-44.
- INCOME: Among women aged 20-44, 82,800 were below 100% of the federal poverty level.
- RACE/ETHNICITY: 579,500 were non-Hispanic white; 197,600 were non-Hispanic black; and 66,700 were Hispanic.
- In 2008, there were 375,500 women in Virginia in need of publicly supported contraceptive services and supplies. Of these, 129,200 were in need of publicly supported services because they were sexually active teenagers, and 246,300 because they had incomes below 250% of the federal poverty level.
- In 2010-2011, 18% of women aged 15-44 in Virginia were uninsured, while 7% were enrolled in Medicaid.
For more information, see Contraceptive Needs and Services, 2006
PREGNANCIES, BIRTHS AND ABORTIONS
- In 2008, there were 159,400 pregnancies to the 1,629,744 women of reproductive age (15-44) in Virginia; 67% of these pregnancies resulted in live births and 18% in induced abortions.
- In 2006, 52% of pregnancies in Virginia were unintended. There were 85,000 unintended pregnancies to women in Virginia, producing a rate of 53 per 1,000 women of reproductive age.
- Of all unintended pregnancies in Virginia in 2006, 51% resulted in live births and 37% resulted in induced abortions.
- In 2006, 45% of births in Virginia resulting from unintended pregnancies were publicly funded, compared with 30% of all births and 19% of births resulting from intended pregnancies.
- Of the 31,800 publicly funded births in Virginia in 2006, 19,500 resulted from unintended pregnancies.
- Births resulting from unintended pregnancies in Virginia accounted for $286 million in public costs in 2006, including $143 million in federal costs and $143 million in state costs.
- In 2008, 28,520 women obtained abortions in Virginia, producing a rate of 17.6 abortions per 1,000 women of reproductive age. Some of these women were from other states, and some Virginia residents had abortions in other states, so this rate may not reflect the abortion rate of state residents. The rate increased 7% since 2005, when it was 16.5 abortions per 1,000 women aged 15-44. Virginia represents 2.4% of all abortions in the United States.
- In 2005, 32,750 Virginia residents obtained abortions, producing a rate of 20.2 per 1,000 women of reproductive age.
- In 2008, there were 15,070 pregnancies to Virginia teens aged 15-19; 58% of these pregnancies resulted in live births and 27% in induced abortions.
- In 2008, 4,100 teens obtained abortions in Virginia, producing a rate of 15 abortions per 1,000 women aged 15-19.
- In 2008, there were 40 abortion providers in Virginia. This represents a 13% decrease from 2005, when there were 46 abortion providers.
- In 2008, 85% of Virginia counties had no abortion provider; 54% of Virginia women lived in these counties.
For more information, see State Facts About Abortion
PUBLICLY FUNDED CONTRACEPTIVE SERVICES
- In 2006 in Virginia, 182 publicly funded family planning centers provided contraceptive care to 103,100 women�including 28,600 teenagers.
- Family planning clinics in Virginia served 26% of all women in need of publicly supported contraceptive services and supplies in 2008.
- In Virginia, $269 in public funds was spent on contraceptive services and supplies per woman in need in 2008.
- In Virginia, 128 family planning centers that received some support through the federal Title-X family planning program provided contraceptive care to 74,500 women�including 22,200 teenagers in 2006.
- Title-X-supported centers in Virginia served 19% 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 Virginia avoid 20,100 unintended pregnancies, which would likely have resulted in about 8,900 unintended births and 8,400 abortions.
- Contraceptive services provided at Title X-supported centers in Virginia helped prevent 14,600 unintended pregnancies, which would likely have resulted in about 6,500 unintended births and 6,100 abortions.
- The services provided at publicly funded family planning centers in Virginia saved the federal and state governments $93,430,000 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 | |
| No policy in effect | |
| 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 and be notified before an abortion |
|
| 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 | |
| All minors explicitly permitted to consent |
|
| Minors' Consent to STI Services | |
| All or some minors explicitly permitted to consent | All minors |
| Parental Involvement in Minors' Abortions | |
| Parent must consent and be notified before an abortion |
|
| Sex Education | |
| Sex education must either stress or cover abstinence | Cover |
| Sex education must cover contraception |
|
| STI/HIV education must either stress or cover abstinence | Cover |
| STI/HIV education must cover contraception |
|
| 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 | 200% Federal Poverty Level |
| Contraceptive Access in Pharmacies | |
| No policy in effect | |
| Refusal Clauses for Contraceptive Services | |
| No policy in effect | |
| Minors' Consent to Contraceptive Services | |
| All minors explicitly permitted to consent |
|
For more information, see State Policies in Brief