Abortion in the Czech Republic is legally allowed up to 12 weeks of pregnancy, with medical indications up to 24 weeks of pregnancy, in case of grave problems with the fetus at any time. Those performed for medical indications are covered by public health insurance, but otherwise, abortion is relatively affordable in the Czech Republic. In Czech, induced abortion is referred to as interrupce or umělé přerušení těhotenství, often colloquially potrat ("miscarriage").

History

In 1957, abortions were legalized in Czechoslovakia, although with restrictions that depended on the current policy of the government. In 1986, the restrictions were lifted, resulting in growth of the number of abortions. Since 1993, abortions for non-medical reasons have not been paid for by the public health system. The absolute peak of the number of abortions was reached in 1990 at over 100,000 per year, but has declined steadily down since then, reaching less than 1/3 of the peak level in 2004. Reasons for this decrease have included the wider availability of contraception and better sex education. Medical abortion (with mifepristone) was registered in 2013.

Statistics

The total number of abortions in 2009 was 40,528, of which 14,629 (36.1%) were spontaneous abortions, and 24,636 (60.8%) were induced abortions (historically the lowest number ever), of which 77% were "mini-interruptions" (within 8 weeks of pregnancy). 1,300 ectopic pregnancies were aborted. Total abortions per woman was 0.53, induced abortions was 0.34. , the abortion rate was 10.7 abortions per 1,000 women aged 15–44 years. Regionally, the highest abortion rate is in northern and north-western Bohemia due to the structure of the population (in 2002 in Tachov District 31.3% of abortions were induced). The lowest ratios are in rural districts of southern Moravia and Bohemian-Moravian Highlands (in 2002 in Žďár nad Sázavou District 15.5% of abortions were induced). Abortion rates in large industrial cities are generally higher compared to small towns and the countryside. Married women form the largest segment, but their ratio is decreasing in favour of unmarried young women. Women with tertiary level of education have about 6% of induced abortions. In 2009, 7.5% of the women were foreigners living in the Czech Republic. Official statistics about abortion tourism (mainly from neighbouring Poland where legal induced abortion is strictly limited) do not exist, but the numbers are estimated to be low.

Public opinion

The public in the Czech Republic generally supports the legality of abortion. This has been confirmed by a number of opinion polls.