South Dakota Reports 0 Abortions as Abortion Ban Saves Babies

In 2024, zero abortions at brick-and-mortar facilities in the state were reported to the South Dakota Department of Health. Immediately after Roe v. Wade was overturned in June 2022, the state prohibited abortion from conception except in cases where a continued pregnancy would threaten the life of the mother(SD. §22-17-5.1).

The data published by the state does not include the total number of abortions obtained by South Dakota residents out of state or the number of self-managed abortions performed by women outside of the healthcare system. The report also does not contain the total number of mail-order abortion drugs obtained by South Dakota residents prescribed by licensed abortionists in other states with shield laws.

Below, Charlotte Lozier Institute (CLI) will describe data provided by the Guttmacher Institute’s Monthly Abortion Provision Study that details the total number of South Dakota women who traveled out of state to obtain an abortion in 2024. Guttmacher’s abortion estimates include the number of abortions obtained at brick-and-mortar facilities and those provided via telehealth and virtual providers in states where such abortions are still legal. CLI will also describe data from the Society of Family Planning’s #WeCount project that details the number of abortion drugs mailed to South Dakota women.

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Guttmacher Data

In 2024, Guttmacher estimated that 460 South Dakota women traveled out of state to obtain abortions. For the number of abortions obtained by South Dakota women in other states according to Guttmacher, see the following table:¹

#WeCount reported that abortion drugs were mailed to 350 South Dakota women.² While the state reported that zero abortions occurred at a brick-and-mortar facilities within state lines, other sources of data provide a more complete picture of abortion totals in the state.

1. The Guttmacher Institute notes that their monthly abortion totals by states are estimates and that each state’s estimate is within a range of uncertainty. Guttmacher also notes that their estimates do not reflect self-managed abortions or those obtained by women in states with total abortion bans under shield laws. This information is updated as of July 14, 2025. Guttmacher’s travel and residence data can be found here (State_Abortion_Travel_2024.csv).
2. #WeCount’s data can be found here by downloading the “Report data tables [.xlsx]” document. The #WeCount report specifies that the numbers included in their tables for abortions performed under shield laws only represent the number of women whom abortion drugs were sent to, not the number of drug-induced abortions that were a result of the mailed drugs. However, because #WeCount’s data is the only source of data that delineates the number of abortions by mode of provision (in-person, telehealth/mail-order, and/or abortion drugs obtained under shield laws), their data is the best available.

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