The World Health Organisation (WHO) issued new abortion guidelines on the 3rd of March 20221. The guidelines urge changes including no gestational age limits to an abortion, no requirement that doctors do abortions, no parental consent for minors, no waiting period and better access to medical abortion pills including through telemedicine. The WHO claims that easy and free access to abortion services is “lifesaving care” and that current abortion restrictions are resulting in women undergoing unsafe abortions which are resulting in preventable death and injury. The WHO states that abortions are “extremely safe” when carried out using their recommended methods. However, their recommendations are more likely to endanger women’s lives. A 2013 study from the University of California showed that abortions conducted by non-physicians (nurses, midwives, physician assistants) were twice as likely to result in complications compared to abortions conducted by physicians2.
