Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/155478 
Year of Publication: 
2016
Series/Report no.: 
Working Paper No. 1606
Publisher: 
Johannes Kepler University of Linz, Department of Economics, Linz
Abstract: 
This work evaluates the impact of an abortion reform in Uruguay allowing free interruption of pregnancy until 12 weeks of gestation on the quantity and quality of births in the short run. We employ a differences-in-differences approach, a comprehensive administrative register of births and a novel identification strategy based on the planned or unplanned nature of pregnancies that end in births. Our results suggest that this policy induced an 8% decline in the number of births of unplanned pregnancies, driven by the group of mothers between 20 and 34 years old with secondary education. This increased the average quality of births in terms of more intensive prenatal control care and a lower probability of having a single mother. Furthermore, we document a positive selection process of births affected by the reform, as adequate prenatal control care and Apgar scores rose among the affected demographic group.
Subjects: 
abortion
Uruguay
fertility
difference-in-differences
JEL: 
I12
I18
J13
J18
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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