ERIC Number: EJ1473154
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2025
Pages: 5
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0744-8481
EISSN: EISSN-1940-3208
Available Date: 0000-00-00
Demand for Medication Abortion among Public University Students in Washington
Taylor Riley1; Emily M. Godfrey2; Erin Angelini3; Yasaman Zia1; Kels Cook4; Jennifer E. Balkus1
Journal of American College Health, v73 n3 p1173-1177 2025
Provision of medication abortion in student health centers is safe and effective, but no public universities in Washington state provide such services. We estimate demand for medication abortion and describe barriers to care among students at four-year public universities in Washington. Using publicly available data, we estimated that students at the 11 Washington public universities obtained between 549 and 932 medication abortions annually. Students must travel an average of 16 miles (range:1-78) or 73 minutes via public transit (range:22-284) round trip to the nearest abortion-providing facility. Average wait time for the first available appointment was 10 days (range:4-14), and average cost was $711. Public universities can play an integral role in expanding abortion access post-Dobbs by providing medication abortion, effectively reducing barriers to care for students. The state legislature can pass legislation requiring universities to provide medication abortion, similar to what other states also protective of abortion rights have done.
Descriptors: College Students, Drug Therapy, Pregnancy, School Health Services, Universities, Access to Health Care, State Legislation
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Washington
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: 1Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA; 2Departments of Family Medicine and Obstetrics and Gynecology, School of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA; 3Department of Applied Mathematics, College of Arts and Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA; 4Department of Geography, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA