Despite Dobbs, sadly, abortions still rising due to mail-order chemical abortions

 

Abortion count rises as women turn to chemical abortions, per new data

The abortion count is rising as women rely more on mail-order chemical abortions, according to the most recent data.

Credit: Yta23/Shutterstock

By Kate Quiñones

July 24, 2026, at 2:31 PM ET

The U.S. abortion count continues to rise even as travel abortions decrease, a recent study found.

The Guttmacher Institute, a data group that openly supports abortion access, documented a decrease in people leaving their own state to get abortions in other states. Instead, abortion seekers turn toward mail-order abortions, which have seen a surge in recent years.

The group tracks abortions monthly, following trends “in the post-Dobbs era” since 2023, according to Guttmacher data scientist and study lead Isaac Maddow-Zimet.

The data indicated an overall increase in abortions from 2025 to 2026.

“In the first three months of 2026, there were 296,130 abortions as compared to 292,590 in the first three months of 2025,” data scholar Michael New told EWTN News. “This is an increase of just over 1%.”

New said this fact has gone underreported.

“Most media outlets that are reporting on the Guttmacher data have not reported on this, but the number of abortions continues to rise,” said New, who is a senior associate scholar at Charlotte Lozier Institute, a group that studies data relating to the pro-life cause.

“These rising abortion numbers are an important reason why pro-lifers are frustrated with the Trump administration’s lack of action on telehealth abortions,” continued New, who also works as a professor at the Busch School of Business at The Catholic University of America.

The Trump administration has neglected to enforce various regulations — such as the Comstock Act or in-person prescription requirements — that could be groundbreaking for protecting unborn children from chemical abortions.

From 2024 to 2025, travel abortions declined by nearly 8%. Scholars agree that mail-order abortion is the reason for the decline in abortion travel.

“Currently, we are seeing a major shift in where and how people access abortion,” Maddow-Zimet said. “While travel remains a critical pathway to care, we have seen a decrease in people leaving their state of residence, likely due to both the growth of telehealth access and fewer options for in-person care in the South and Southeast.”

New also cited chemical abortions as the draw away from travel abortions.

“The main reason for this decline in out-of-state travel is because of the rising number of telehealth abortions,” New said. “The most recent data from the Society for Family Planning shows that approximately 27% of all abortions are done by telehealth.”

In Florida, the study also found a near tripling of abortion travel by Floridians after the state passed a heartbeat law to protect unborn babies; at the same time, fewer people traveled to Florida to obtain abortions due to this law.

“The national decline [in travel abortions] might have been even larger had Florida not started enforcing a Heartbeat Act in 2024,” New said. “Because of this strong pro-life law, far fewer women residing in southern states traveled to Florida for abortions.”

Texas has also seen a decline in Texans traveling to get abortions.

“This trend is seen at the state level,” New continued. “Between 2024 and 2025 the number of Texas women obtaining abortions in other states fell by 19%.”

Mail-order abortion is pro-life priority

Advocates for unborn children highlighted the importance of opposing chemical abortions and protecting unborn children across state lines.

Abortion continues to rise with the increase in mail-order abortions.

Kelsey Pritchard, Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America spokeswoman, called for protections of unborn children across state lines.

“We need a national minimum standard to ensure children across America have basic human rights and the chance at life, regardless of their zip code,” Pritchard told EWTN News.

“Nine states and the District of Columbia still have no gestational limits whatsoever on abortion, allowing abortion up to the moment of birth, with late-term abortion centers purposely located within range of pro-life state borders,” Pritchard said. “This is barbaric and extreme, and it places the United States in the same category as communist countries like China and Vietnam on abortion.”

“While stopping the ‘Wild West’ of unregulated abortion by mail is our immediate priority, both issues underscore the urgent need for national action to protect unborn children and their mothers,” Pritchard said.

“Abortion travel is down overall, but mail-order abortions are surging and driving the national total up to an estimated 1.1 million abortions per year — more than the day Roe was reversed,” Pritchard said. “Every single month, approximately 15,000 babies in the womb die from mail-order abortion drugs in states with pro-life laws, while women and girls are poisoned and coerced by abusers who obtain these drugs online without so much as an ID check.”

Kristi Hamrick, Students for Life spokeswoman, questioned the data, noting that there is no reporting requirement for abortion.

“I find it extraordinary that the abortion industry reports so much data that is accepted as gospel, despite the fact that we canʼt verify it,” Hamrick said. “We have no national abortion reporting law, and while this data will be broadly reported, every point of data from pro-life sources is treated as suspect.”

Guttmacher collects monthly data from brick-and-mortar facilities and telehealth providers, according to the study methodology.

The nature of mail-order abortion pills makes it harder to accurately track the number of the abortions in the U.S. as the pills are highly unregulated and some companies operate outside of the U.S. healthcare system.

“The landscape of abortion is shifting, from brick-and-mortar abortion vendor to online pill pushers, so less driving, if that is true, does not mean less abortion,” Hamrick said.

For Students for Life, “fighting chemical abortion pills” is a priority.

Through pregnancy help centers, maternity homes, and other programs, the pro-life movement continues to encourage women to choose life.

“But what is happening in real time is that many are reaching out to women online and in their communities to encourage and support them in choosing life, while we also have to confront a new abortion cartel,” Hamrick said.

The Vatican explores a Papal visit to Ukraine

 

Vatican weighing papal trip to Ukraine

The Holy See’s foreign minister said it is evaluating the timing and conditions for a possible visit to the country by Pope Leo XIV.

Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, the Holy See’s secretary for relations with states and international organizations, meets with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv on July 20, 2026. | Credit: Embassy of Ukraine to the Holy See.

By Victoria Cardiel

July 24, 2026 at 10:30 AM ET

The Vatican will study the conditions needed for a possible trip by Pope Leo XIV to Ukraine, Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher said following a six-day pastoral and diplomatic mission to the war-torn country.

Gallagher, the Holy See’s secretary for relations with states and international organizations, said the possibility of a papal visit was among the questions he heard most frequently during his stay.

“Almost everyone I met asked me that question. My answer is very simple. The Holy Father takes this invitation very seriously,” Gallagher told Vatican Media in Kraków, Poland, before returning to Rome.

“For our part, we will continue to study the conditions necessary to determine the right time and the most appropriate way for such a visit to bear the greatest possible fruit for Ukraine and for peace in the world,” he said.

Gallagher spent six days in Ukraine, which has been at war since 2014 and has endured Russia’s full-scale invasion since February 2022. He held political, institutional, and Church meetings and took part in several pastoral events.

He met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv on July 20. Zelenskyy expressed gratitude for the Holy See’s continuing support for Ukraine amid the war with Russia.

The principal purpose of Gallagher’s visit was to participate in celebrations marking the 35th anniversary of the restoration of the Latin Catholic Church’s structures at the Marian shrine of Berdychiv. Thousands of faithful attended the celebrations July 19.

Gallagher said Ukrainian authorities had expressed appreciation for the Holy See’s support.

“In our meetings with the authorities, we encountered profound gratitude for the Holy Father’s appeals and his words, and that is a source of encouragement for us,” he said.

“They feel supported by the closeness shown first by Pope Francis and now by Pope Leo. This encourages the Holy See to renew its commitment to dialogue with the international community and with the Russian authorities, and to continue its humanitarian efforts, such as the mission entrusted to Cardinal Matteo Maria Zuppi, who continues working for the return of children, prisoners, and civilians.”

Pope Leo XIV has received several official invitations to visit Ukraine. Zelenskyy renewed the invitation during a conversation with the pope on Good Friday.

During that exchange, Pope Leo expressed his closeness to the Ukrainian people amid the suffering caused by the war and emphasized the urgency of ensuring humanitarian assistance. He also expressed his hope for an end to hostilities and a just and lasting peace with Russia.

A just and lasting peace

Asked about the prospects for a ceasefire, Gallagher said he had seen a strong willingness on the Ukrainian side to work toward that goal.

“During these days I have seen a strong determination on the Ukrainian side to work towards that goal. It is difficult for me to say whether this can be achieved in the immediate future, but we must continue to work in that direction,” he said.

“At the same time, as we saw at the shrine of Berdychiv — and as the history of this remarkable place of Marian devotion reminds us, renowned for many reported healings — we should never rule out the possibility of a miracle.”

Gallagher also reflected on what he had witnessed during the mission.

“For me, this has been a profoundly positive experience. Beyond the logistical effort and the long journey required to reach Ukraine, it has allowed me to touch the reality of today’s world with my own hands,” he said.

“We must remember that not everyone lives as we do in Italy or in my native England. There is a dark and troubling reality in our world today. We must not give in. In our own way, we too are called to strive, doing our part with the means available to us, in order to build peace.”

Zuppi’s humanitarian mission

Gallagher’s visit followed Cardinal Matteo Maria Zuppi’s second mission to Ukraine as Pope Leo XIV’s special envoy.

The archbishop of Bologna completed four days of meetings in Lviv and Kyiv focused on prisoner exchanges, the return of Ukrainian children taken to Russia, and the delivery of humanitarian assistance.

Zuppi met civil and religious authorities, officials responsible for prisoner exchanges and relatives of military personnel and civilians being held in Russia.

Among his principal meetings was an encounter with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, who thanked the Holy See for its humanitarian efforts and requested its support in achieving a comprehensive and lasting peace.

Sybiha also raised Kyiv’s concerns about civilians detained in Russian territory and called for a humanitarian corridor to assist thousands of people in the Russian-occupied communities of Oleshky and Hola Prystan in the Kherson region.

Prisoners were a central focus of the mission. Proposals discussed included a possible comprehensive exchange of prisoners of war, continued efforts to locate missing people, and measures to facilitate the return of civilians.

The parties also discussed the situation of Ukrainian children taken illegally to Russia, an issue in which the Holy See has been involved for years through diplomatic and humanitarian initiatives.

Another topic was the protection of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, a UNESCO World Heritage Site that has recently been damaged amid attacks connected to the war. Ukrainian authorities consider its preservation and restoration a priority.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

Yesterday was World Day for Grandparents, the Elderly. Same celebration for USA coming in September

 

Vatican

• elderly
• interview
• dicastery
• world day
• church

Old age: 'not a burden to manage, but a gift to cherish'

On the occasion of the Sixth World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly, held yesterday on the feast of 'Jesus' grandparents' Saints Joachim and Anne, Vatican News speaks with Vittorio Scelzo, head of the pastoral care of the elderly at the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life, who reflects on the precious value of elderly people and the grandparents.

By Lorena Leonardi 

"It is not enough to organize services; we must build relationships." Only in this way can "the certainty of not being forgotten by God" become "the daily experience of not being forgotten by one's parish and one's family."

With these words, in an interview with Vatican News, Vittorio Scelzo, an official of the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life and head of its pastoral care of the elderly, reflected on the six years since the institution of the World Day dedicated to grandparents and the elderly. This year it was celebrated on Sunday, 26 July, the feast of Saints Joachim and Anne, the parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary—in other words, "Jesus' grandparents."

The World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly this year reached its sixth 'edition,' if you will. Looking back, what assessment can be made of the journey so far?

Over these years, the World Day has gradually become established as a regular fixture in the life of the Church. Born in response to the isolation brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, it has given reflection on old age a broader and more coherent framework. The objective has never been simply to celebrate a special day, but rather to foster the development of a genuine pastoral ministry for older people, capable of moving beyond an understanding of old age that is limited to care and assistance. Older people are no longer seen merely as recipients of charitable services, but as active subjects of pastoral life. They make up a significant portion of the People of God, and it is essential that they receive the pastoral attention they deserve. The long-term challenge is to transform this awareness into ordinary pastoral practice, embedding it in the formative journey of ecclesial communities.

The theme chosen by Leo XIV, "I will never forget you" (Isaiah 49:15), highlights God's closeness and the community's commitment to older people, especially those who are most alone. What concrete perspectives does this message open up?

The words of Isaiah open up some very meaningful perspectives. First of all, they call us to overcome what Pope Francis described as the "throwaway culture," urging communities to go out and seek out older people. In a time when people's worth is measured by their efficiency, those who lose their strength or their memory risk feeling forgotten. Leo XIV adds that "God's love, which forgets no one, is the answer to the anonymity in which human life so often loses itself." The message reminds us that the Church's mission is to make this divine "not forgetting" visible and tangible, echoing the encyclical Magnifica humanitas. It is not enough to affirm the dignity of older people in words; we must go out to meet them, draw close through a visit or an embrace. In practical terms, the Pope is asking people to visit the elderly—an invitation that carries particular weight at this time of year, marked by the summer heat and by a loneliness that is often even more acute than at other times. This may seem—and indeed is—a call for greater social concern. Yet experience teaches us that such closeness will cease to be an isolated gesture only when older people are truly placed at the center of the Church's life. Then everyone will recognize how precious their presence is: not a burden to manage, but a gift to cherish.

Practically speaking what does this look like?

Practically speaking, this means that the community must take responsibility for addressing loneliness, the real poverty of old age. It is not enough to organize services; we must build relationships. As we often say in the Dicastery, the challenge is to move "from assistance to existence," creating ways of living in which older people feel they belong to a communal "we." The certainty of not being forgotten by God must become the daily experience of not being forgotten by one's parish and one's family.

Over these years you have gathered many significant experiences from dioceses and parishes. Are there particularly successful initiatives or good practices that reflect a growing awareness of the needs of older people?

Yes. The Dicastery's ongoing monitoring reveals a remarkable degree of pastoral creativity, with different responses depending on geographical context. In many Latin American dioceses, the celebration is closely linked to devotion to Saint Anne. In Venezuela, the pastoral ministry for the elderly is especially committed to ensuring that the message, "I will never forget you," reaches all older people affected by the earthquake. Asia and Africa also offer many initiatives that, beginning with the World Day, place older people back at the heart of ecclesial life. The Diocese of Kampala in Uganda is probably the one with the most extensive and widespread activities. In India, meanwhile, it has been young people who, over the years, have created social media campaigns to promote the World Day. One practice that is spreading everywhere, and which we have strongly encouraged, is visiting elderly people who live alone. Many parishes have organized regular companionship visits through dedicated volunteer schedules. In Europe, projects promoting an "intergenerational alliance" stand out, bringing young and old together for moments of prayer or recreation, overcoming a generational divide that ultimately impoverishes both groups. When older people return to the center of community life, the whole community benefits.

The Holy Father invites the Church to make closeness to older people an ordinary style of ecclesial life, rather than something limited to a single day. What are the main challenges to making this happen today?

Above all, a change of mindset is needed—not only in society, but also among older people themselves. It is unacceptable to spend, or allow others to spend, twenty or thirty years without purpose or mission. Old age is a season of life that must discover its own spirituality; it is not an empty period to be filled or managed while waiting for the end. Nor can we pretend it does not exist and continue living as though time had never passed. Addressing older people directly in his message, Pope Leo XIV encourages them with a clear appeal: "Do not be afraid of frailty!" He explains that this weakness, when accepted, opens the heart to prayer and itself becomes a vocation. A concrete sign of this is the mission the Pope entrusts precisely to older people: to join him in persistent prayer that peace may soon come to the world. It is a vocation, not a spiritual retirement.

To accompany the World Day, pastoral resources, the official prayer, and other materials have been prepared. Who are they intended for, and how can they help communities celebrate this occasion in a concrete way?

The resources that have been prepared—the so-called "pastoral kit," available on the Dicastery's website—are practical tools designed to support the work of ecclesial communities. The proposal is deliberately simple: celebrate a Mass with older people, ideally in the cathedral church, and visit elderly members of the community who live alone. These are very concrete guidelines. In keeping with this year's theme, communities are asked to forget no one, and therefore to visit even those who are bedridden or unable to take part in parish activities. For them too, the World Day is a call to renewal and to take seriously Leo XIV's request that they intercede for peace.