For the second year in a row, fewer medical students are applying to residency programs in states with near-total abortion bans, according to a study new data snapshot of the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) released Thursday.
Final-year students in a medical doctorate program have applied to fewer residency programs overall, regardless of the state the program is in, since 2022.
But new data from the AAMC shows that there have been larger declines in applications to residency programs in states where abortion is almost completely banned, indicating that medical school graduates may be avoiding these places.
“The status of abortion bans in states may be correlated with the number and size of the program, but these findings suggest that candidates may be responding to something independent of the size of the program, especially given two years of similar patterns,” said the AAMC. in a statement.
The number of medical graduates applying to a residency program in states with near-total abortion bans fell 4.2% in 2024 compared to last year.
Meanwhile, in states where abortion remains legal, residency applications decreased by 0.6 percent.
These numbers vary depending on the doctor’s specialty. In the data snapshot, AAMC provided application breakdowns for specialties most likely to treat pregnant women and perform abortions, such as pediatrics, obstetrics and gynecology, and internal medicine.
The number of applications for pediatric residency programs in states with near-total abortion bans fell 17.3% this year – the most of all specialties
The year after Roe v. Wade, the number of applications for obstetrics and gynecology residency programs in states with near-total abortion bans fell by nearly 12%.
In the most recent application cycle, applications to obstetrics and gynecology residency programs in states with the most restrictive abortion bans declined 6.7 percent, according to the data snapshot.
Although most obstetricians and gynecologists in the U.S. do not provide abortions, most abortions are performed by a gynecologist.
Applications to family medicine residency programs in states with near-total bans on abortion among medical school graduates decreased by 7.6% in the 2022-23 cycle and 5.2% in the 2023-24 cycle.
Meanwhile, applications to internal medicine residency programs in states with near-total abortion bans declined 7.9% in the most recent cycle, compared with 0.3% the previous year.
There are 14 states where access to abortion is almost completely banned, and many of these states suffer from a shortage of health care providers, which is only expected to get worse.
Existing shortages will likely worsen due to legislation that deters would-be doctors, warned Atul Grover, executive director of AAMC’s Institute for Research and Action.
“Rural states have appropriately tried to attract and retain doctors by encouraging them to stay in the state for college, medical school and residency training,” Grover said in an email to The Hill.
States with large rural communities like Kentucky, West Virginia and Mississippi lose more than a quarter of their population. university graduates to other states every year.
“While these policies are effective, they could be undermined if states enact other policies that are viewed by physicians as violating their professional autonomy,” he said.
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