Historical abortion statistics, Western Australia (Australia)

Historical abortion statistics, Western Australia (Australia)

compiled by Wm. Robert Johnston
last updated 7 June 2026

year	live births	abortions, legal reported	abortions, legal reported (Medicare)	fetal deaths	abortion ratio	abortion %	abortion rate (per 1000 women ages 15-44)
1960	16,926
1961	17,078
1962	17,064
1963	17,290
1964	16,685
1965	16,186
1966	17,194
1967	18,023
1968	19,541
1969	20,800
1970	21,680
1971	24,276
1972	22,211
1973	20,531
1974	20,243
1975	20,365
1976	20,700
1977	20,688
1978	20,662
1979	20,515
1980	20,652
1981	21,900
1982	22,261
1983	23,087
1984	21,625		(6,090)		282	22.0
1985	23,109		(6,210)		269	21.2
1986	24,236		(6,590)		272	21.4
1987	23,332		(6,780)		291	22.5
1988	25,143		(6,830)		272	21.4
1989	25,051		(7,180)		287	22.3
1990	25,356		(7,500)		296	22.8
1991	25,417		(7,660)		301	23.2
1992	25,073		(7,880)		314	23.9
1993	25,081		(8,180)		326	24.6
1994	25,138		8,519	131	339	25.3
1995	25,139		8,736	162	348	25.8
1996	24,793		8,478	161	342	25.5
1997	24,776		8,467	135	342	25.5
1998	24,717		8,033	126	325	24.5
1999	24,849	8,220	7,295	179	331	24.9
2000	25,093	8,337	7,402	206	332	24.9
2001	24,002	8,378	7,844		349.1	25.87	19.9
2002	23,601	8,262	8,262		350.1	25.93	19.5
2003	24,273	7,941	7,941		327.2	24.65	18.7
2004	25,295	7,869	7,869		311.1	23.73	18.5
2005	26,253	7,829	7,829		298.2	22.97	18.2
2006	27,776	8,336	8,336		300.1	23.08	19.2
2007	29,164	8,430	8,430		289.1	22.42	18.9
2008	31,850	8,669	8,669		272.2	21.39	18.8
2009	30,878	8,908	8,908		288.5	22.39	18.7
2010	31,424	8,438	8,438		268.5	21.17	17.4
2011	32,259	8,723	8,743		271.0	21.32	17.5
2012	33,627	8,465	8,465		251.7	20.11	16.4
2013	34,516	8,508	8,508		246.5	19.78	16.0
2014	35,403	8,516	8,516		240.5	19.39	15.9
2015	35,199	8,179	8,179		232.4	18.86	15.2
2016	35,905	7,855	7,855		218.8	17.95	14.7
2017	34,506	7,828	7,828		226.9	18.49	14.6
2018	33,442	7,816	7,816		233.7	18.94	14.6
2019	33,161	7,869	7,869		237.3	19.18	14.5
2020	32,426	7,955	7,955		245.3	19.70	14.5
2021	34,039	8,185	8,185		240.5	19.38	14.9
2022	31,460	8,545	8,545		271.6	21.36	15.5
2023	32,031		6,445		201.2	16.75	11.7
2024	30,541		8,896		225.8	18.42	12.5
2025			7,362
2026			2,548
year	live births	abortions, legal reported	abortions, legal reported (Medicare)	fetal deaths	abortion ratio	abortion %	abortion rate (per 1000 women ages 15-44)

Notes: Reporting for abortions is incomplete; reported abortions include only Medicare abortions, and these figures are incomplete for 2010-2011. Abortion figures are for calendar years, some figures are interpolated from fiscal year figures.

Sources (incomplete):

Australian Bureau of Statistics, 11 Nov. 2009, "33010DO001_2008 Births, Australia, 2008," Australian Bureau of Statistics, on line [http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/subscriber.nsf/log?openagent&33010do001_2008.xls&3301.0&Data%20Cubes&A1AC0DA0560BF50CCA25766A00121D9C&0&2008&11.11.2009&Previous].
Australian Bureau of Statistics, 25 Oct. 2011, "3301.0 - Births, Australia, 2010: States and territories," Australian Bureau of Statistics, on line [http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Products/4DBF6BE0677A9A7ACA257933001675E9?opendocument].
Australian Bureau of Statistics, 29 Oct. 2007, "3301.0 Births, Australia," Australian Bureau of Statistics, on line [http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/subscriber.nsf/log?openagent&33010_table_1_2006.zip&3301.0&Data%20Cubes&0C9BCCC03FFD4F7DCA2573800015B897&0&2006&29.10.2007&Latest].
Australian Bureau of Statistics, 3 June 2003, "Australian Social Trends: Population--State summary tables," Australian Bureau of Statistics, on line [http://www.abs.gov.au/Ausstats/abs%40.nsf/94713ad445ff1425ca25682000192af2/54f9dc094d0b4814ca256d39001bc333!OpenDocument].
Australian Bureau of Statistics, 5 Aug. 2008, "3105.0.65.001 Australian Historical Population Statistics, 2008, 5. Births," Australian Bureau of Statistics, on line [http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/subscriber.nsf/log?openagent&3105065001ds0005_2008.xls&3105.0.65.001&Data%20Cubes&D15AA24359739174CA25749B00176F62&0&2008&05.08.2008&Latest].
Australian Bureau of Statistics, 25 Oct. 2012, "Table 1: Births, summary, states and territories--2001 to 2011," Australian Bureau of Statistics, on line [http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/subscriber.nsf/log?openagent&33010do001_2011.xls&3301.0&Data%20Cubes&433EE795894F6431CA257AA100127D7E&0&2011&25.10.2012&Latest].
Australian Bureau of Statistics, 10 July 2014, "Table 1: Births, summary, states and territories--2002 to 2012," Australian Bureau of Statistics, on line [http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/subscriber.nsf/log?openagent&33010do001_2012.xls&3301.0&Data%20Cubes&D5F2BC3BBE0663AFCA257C0D000F7DD1&0&2012&24.10.2013&Latest].
Australian Bureau of Statistics, 3 Nov. 2014, "3301.0 - Births, Australia, 2013: States and territories," Australian Bureau of Statistics, on line [http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Latestproducts/3301.0Main%20Features52013?opendocument&tabname=Summary&prodno=3301.0&issue=2013&num=&view=].
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2001, "Australia's mothers and babies 1999," Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, National Perinatal Statistics Unit, on line [http://www.npsu.unsw.edu.au/PRERUWeb.nsf/resources/AMB_1995-98/$file/ps11.pdf].
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2003, "Australia's mothers and babies 2000," Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, National Perinatal Statistics Unit, on line [http://www.aihw.gov.au/WorkArea/DownloadAsset.aspx?id=6442458935].
Family Planning Queensland, July 2000, "Abortion Statistics," Family Planning Queensland, on line [http://www.fpq.asn.au/factsheets_brochures/student_info/Abortion%20stats.pdf].
HIC, 2005, "Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) Item Statistics Reports," HIC, on line [http://www.hic.gov.au/statistics/dyn_mbs/forms/mbs_tab4.shtml].
Maternal and Child Health Unit, Department of Health, Western Australia, July 2005, "Induced Abortion in Western Australia 1999-2004: Report of the WA Abortion Notification System," Department of Health, Government of Western Australia, on line [http://www.health.wa.gov.au/publications/documents/Abortion%20Report%20FINAL2.pdf].
Maternal and Child Health Unit, Department of Health, Western Australia, May 2011, "Induced Abortions in Western Australia, 2006-2009: Report of the WA Abortion Notification System," Department of Health, Government of Western Australia, on line [http://www.health.wa.gov.au/publications/documents/Abortion_Report_06-09.pdf].
Maternal and Child Health Unit, Department of Health, Western Australia, Nov. 2006, "Induced Abortions in Western Australia, 1999-2005: Report of the WA Abortion Notification System," Department of Health, Government of Western Australia, on line [http://www.health.wa.gov.au/publications/documents/AbortionReport1999-2005FINAL%284%29.pdf].
Maternal and Child Health Unit, Department of Health, Western Australia, July 2013, "Induced Abortions in Western Australia, 2010-2012: Fourth Report of the Western Australian Abortion Notification System," Department of Health, Government of Western Australia, on line [http://www.health.wa.gov.au/publications/documents/Abortion_Report_2010-12.pdf].
Medicare Australia, 2008, "Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) Item Statistics Reports," Medicare Australia, on line [https://www.medicareaustralia.gov.au/statistics/mbs_item.shtml].
Medicare Australia, 2012, "Medicare Item Reports," Medicare Australia, on line [https://www.medicareaustralia.gov.au/statistics/mbs_item.shtml].
Medicare Australia, Jan. 2015, "Medicare Item Reports," Medicare Australia, on line [https://www.medicareaustralia.gov.au/statistics/mbs_item.shtml].
Queensland Right to Life, "Number of abortions conducted in Australia," Queensland Right to Life, on line [http://www.qrtl.org.au/abort/facts.htm].
Australian Bureau of Statistics, 30 Aug. 2022, "Regional population by age and sex," Australian Bureau of Statistics, on line [https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/population/regional-population-age-and-sex/latest-release].
Australian Bureau of Statistics, 25 Oct. 2022, "Births, Australia," Australian Bureau of Statistics, on line [https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/population/births-australia/2021].
Services Australia, 2023, "Medicare Item Reports," on line, Medicare Statistics [http://medicarestatistics.humanservices.gov.au/statistics/mbs_item.jsp].
Wright, S. M., D. Bateson, and K. McGeechan, 2021, "Induced abortion in Australia: 2000-2022," Family Planning NSW, Ashfield, Australia, on line [https://www.fpnsw.org.au/sites/default/files/assets/Induced-Abortion-in-Australia_2000-2020.pdf].

© 2004-2025, 2026 by Wm. Robert Johnston.
Last modified 7 June 2026.
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