The Consequences of Abortion Funding Bans

Lauren Hoehn-Velasco, Nikita Dhingra and Mayra Pineda-Torres ()

No 34548, NBER Working Papers from National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc

Abstract: Do restrictions on public funding create unintended reliance on social assistance? In this paper, we study the 1976 Hyde Amendment, which barred federal funding for abortion. Using county-level data and an event-study design, we show that reduced federal funding for abortion increased fertility among young women by 2%. These effects were concentrated among non-white women, who subsequently experienced greater welfare participation in states with larger abortion funding declines. The consequences extend into the next generation: non-white girls born after Hyde were more likely to rely on public assistance in adulthood. Abortion funding restrictions reinforce long-run economic inequality across generations.

JEL-codes: D6 H51 H53 I13 I18 J13 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025-12
Note: CH DAE EH
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