Abortion in Iceland
Abortion in Iceland has been legal in specific medical and social circumstances[1][2] since 22 May 1975. The abortion rate in Iceland is relatively high in comparison to other Nordic countries.
Legislation
Abortion in Iceland was legalized on a number of grounds on 22 May 1975. Although the law does not allow abortions to be performed on request, they are allowed in various medical and social circumstances. Medically, an abortion is lawful if a pregnancy threatens a woman's physical or mental health, if the fetus has a serious congenital defect, or if the woman is deemed incapable of caring for a child because of her age or mental disability. Social grounds for allowing abortion include: if the pregnancy is the result of rape or incest; if the woman has had several children already with only brief periods between pregnancies; if the woman lives in a particularly difficult family situation; or if the woman's or her partner's ill health prevents them from being able to care for a child.[2]
Abortion is only legal if performed within the first 16 weeks of pregnancy, unless a pregnancy threatens the woman's health or the fetus has a deformity.[2] All Icelandic women who undergo abortions are required to receive counselling both prior to and following the procedure, including education about contraceptive use.[3]
The performance of an unlawful abortion carries a sentence of between five and seven years' imprisonment.[2]
Statistics
A study published in 2003 found that over the period of 1976–1999 the abortion rate in Iceland rose by 133%, increasing from 9.4 abortions per 1000 women to 21.9 per 1000 women, with the highest regional rates in the Reykjavík area. The authors noted that Iceland's abortion rate was higher than in any of the other Nordic countries, a trend which they attributed to the limited sex education, early initiation of sexual activity and less effective use of contraception in Iceland.[4]
As of 2010, the abortion rate in Iceland was 14.5 abortions per 1000 women aged 15–44 years.[5]
References
- ↑ Lög um ráðgjöf og fræðslu varðandi kynlíf og barneignir og um fóstureyðingar og ófrjósemisaðgerðir (Icelandic)
- 1 2 3 4 "Abortion in Iceland". United Nations. Retrieved 6 September 2014.
- ↑ "Europe's terms for terminations". BBC. 2 June 2002. Retrieved 6 September 2014.
- ↑ Bender S; Geirsson RT; Kosunen E (2003). "Trends in teenage fertility, abortion, and pregnancy rates in Iceland compared with other Nordic countries, 1976-99". Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica. 82 (1): 38–47. doi:10.1034/j.1600-0412.2003.820107.x. PMID 12580838.
- ↑ "World Abortion Policies 2013". United Nations. 2013. Retrieved 3 March 2014.