Abortion 

Introduction 

An abortion is the medical process of ending a pregnancy so that it does not result in the birth of a baby.

The pregnancy is ended either by taking an abortion pill or by having a surgical procedure, depending on how many weeks pregnant you are (see How it is performed for more information).

Sometimes, healthcare professionals may refer to an abortion as a 'termination of pregnancy' or 'termination'.

An abortion is different from a miscarriage, where the pregnancy ends without medical intervention (although medical treatment may be needed after a miscarriage).

A difficult decision

There are many reasons why you might decide to have an abortion – for example, because of your personal circumstances, because your health may be at risk, or there is a high probability that the baby will have a medical condition.

The law in the UK makes it legal to have an abortion during the first 24 weeks of pregnancy so long as certain criteria are met (see below).

There are also a few situations when the law states that an abortion may be carried out later (see Abortion - when it is carried out).

The Abortion Act 1967 covers the UK mainland (England, Scotland and Wales) but not Northern Ireland. The law states that:

  • abortions must be carried out in a hospital or a specialised licensed clinic
  • two doctors must agree that an abortion would cause less damage to a woman's physical or mental health than continuing with the pregnancy

NHS abortions

If you want to have an abortion on the NHS, you might find it beneficial to discuss options with a health professional. You will need a referral from two doctors who have to agree that the requirements of the Abortion Act 1967 have been met.

Usually, the first doctor is your GP and the second is a doctor who works at the hospital or clinic where the abortion will take place.

If you do not want to ask your GP to refer you for an abortion, you can go to your local family planning clinic or genito-urinary medicine (GUM) clinic. Some doctors at these clinics can refer women for an NHS abortion, but if they cannot, they must refer you to another doctor.

The law states that a doctor can refuse to certify a woman for an abortion if they have a moral objection to abortion. If this is the case, they should recommend another doctor who is willing to help.

In some areas, women are able to refer themselves to the local Pregnancy Advisory Service, without first getting a referral from a local doctor. It does, however, help to talk to other health professionals such as your GP or contraception clinic nurse as well. You can self-refer for an NHS-funded abortion by calling the BPAS Actionline 08457 30 40 30.

Funding of NHS abortion services differs in various parts of the country. The level of NHS provision ranges from more than 90% of local demand to less than 60%.

In some areas, the NHS will pay for abortions at private clinics, but in other areas you may need to pay for an abortion in a private clinic.

Private abortions

You can contact a private abortion clinic without being referred by a doctor. However, the NHS may not pay for this, and the agreement of two doctors is still required. The clinic will make the arrangements. Costs for abortions in private clinics vary and depend on:

  • which organisation or company carries out the abortion
  • the stage of pregnancy (earlier abortions are usually less expensive)
  • whether an overnight stay is needed
  • the method of abortion used

If you are considering having an abortion, it is important to talk to somebody about it as soon as possible.

Last reviewed: 04/06/2010

Next review due: 04/06/2012

Comments

11 Comments

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Comments are personal views. Any information they give has not been checked and may not be accurate.

Simon Nicholls said on 17 May 2012

LONDON, May 16, 2012 – At an average of £1000 each, repeat abortions are costing the National Health Service up to £1 million a week. Using 2010 abortion statistics available from a Department of Health report, the Daily Mail has found that some women have had as many as nine abortions, all paid for by the taxpayer.

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Simon Nicholls said on 16 May 2012

“The so-called right to abortion has pitted mothers against their children and women against men. It has sown violence and discord at the heart of the most intimate human relationships. It has aggravated the derogation of the father's role in an increasingly fatherless society. It has portrayed the greatest of gifts--a child--as a competitor, an intrusion and an inconvenience. It has nominally accorded mothers unfettered dominion over the dependent lives of their physically dependent sons and daughters. And, in granting this unconscionable power, it has exposed many women to unjust and selfish demands from their husbands or other sexual partners.”
? Mother Teresa

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norii said on 12 May 2012

Hi I had my Abortion just yesterday which was done by Surgical procedure as I was 13 weeks in, I got told that I would be bleeding between 4-6 days it has only been 24 hours and my bleeding has stopped, is that normal? Or do I have to be worried?

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ccw22 said on 15 April 2012

The NHS is there to provide good healthcare to everybody! But you want women who want to end a pregnancy to pay for it in instalments?! What about all the women who do pay tax, have they got to pay it off as well? And speaking as a woman, my biggest concern over getting pregnant is will I financially cope, or are my partner and I ready for the commitment, or do I want to end my career for the next 5 years? Not will I be able to afford an abortion!

Mistakes and accidents happen, its barbaric to punish a woman and consequentiality the child into living under the poverty line as is the case with a lot of young women. And surely doll money will cost the state more than an abortion?

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Jacob M said on 14 April 2012

Abortion is healthcare, as much as everything else. There are plenty of people who believe all healthcare is immoral. Their personal choices are absolutely theirs to own and to me are imperitive. What the NHS does in providing abortion and providing other healthcare is to provide those choices and provide them safely, and healthily by virtue of it being public.

Privatisation of abortion makes it profit driven, it means poorer women suffer or are unable to get decent treatment, it means less people know which providers they can trust,t makes people more vulnerable to abuse, it opens up individual providers up to the threat of anti-abortion attacks, it risks a depletion of services, and increase in late-term abortions, an increased possibility of abolition, back street abortions, and actually increased rates of unwanted pregnancy and in-fact very probably increased rates of abortion anyway.

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Spor Bishkek said on 07 April 2012

I had an abortion at 8 weeks.

It was really easy and the inconveneince of travelling to and from the clinc was more of an issue that the simple procedure.

I am so relieved it was so easy and completed so quickly.

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Simon Nicholls said on 25 March 2012

Why is it that any remotely anti abortion comments questioning NHS practice and procedure are removed? This is the UK!

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Simon Nicholls said on 25 March 2012

You say i the schpiel that; There are many reasons why you might decide to have an abortion – for example, because of your personal circumstancesThere are many reasons why you might decide to have an abortion – for example, because of your personal circumstances,.."

But then you say;

"two doctors must agree that an abortion would cause less damage to a woman's physical or mental health than continuing with the pregnancy"

Can they both be true?


So anyhow in what circumstances would a tax payer funded abortion on demand up to 24 weeks ever be refused? We all know that abortionists cynically cling to the notion that continuing any pregnancy presents marginally more potential risks than aborting it...

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202 said on 02 December 2011

Most of the comments I found on the internet about abortions on the NHS seemed to say that it will take a long time to get treatment. However when I made the decision to have a termination it took 5 days in total from seeing the doctor, then him referring me to a family planning clinic to actually having the procedure done.

I live in the Birmingham area. I was 8 weeks into my pregnancy and I chose the Manual vacuum aspiration because I felt safer with the idea of being in the care of medical professionals. All the staff were very professional and supportive. It was a difficult decision for me but was made easier by how smoothly everything went.

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Kritgal said on 28 February 2011

This introduction page is poorly worded as it states in a sub heading that abortion is "a difficult decision". It does not need to be and some women know it is absolutely right for them and have no difficulty reacing this decision. The process could be made easier with reduced waiting times between each stage of the referral and consulation process.

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Anon4338 said on 28 November 2010

I need to see my GP for an abortion referral, How will I know if my GP has a moral objection to this? There is no reference on the practice leaflet as to whether my GP or other GPs in the surgery will make a referral. My family planning clinic is difficult to get to. I am anxious and do not want to seek health treatment and be told my GP will not treat me. I think any GP should treat any patient but this still does not happen for abortion services. Any advice?

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