Abortion in the Czech Republic
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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 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, abortion is referred to as interupce or umělé přerušení těhotenství, often incorrectly potrat ("miscarriage").
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[edit] 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 the number of abortions. Since 1992, abortions for non-medical reasons have not 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 contraceptions and better sex education.
[edit] Public opinion
The public in the Czech Republic generally supports the legality of abortion. This was confirmed in a May 2005 Euro RSCG/TNS Sofres poll which examined attitutes toward abortion in 10 European countries, asking polltakers whether they agreed with the statement, "If a a woman doesn't want children, she should be allowed to have an abortion". 66% of Czechs replied "very much", 15% replied "a little", 8% replied "not really", and replied 10% "not at all". Support for the availability of abortion in the Czech Republic, at 81%, was the highest out of all the nations featured in the poll. [1]
An April 2003 CDC/ORC Macro report examined opinions on abortion among women aged 15 to 44, asking, "Do you think that a woman always has the right to decide about her pregnancy, including whether to have an abortion?" In 1993, 85% of Czechs surveyed thought a woman always had the right to an abortion and 15% did not. Of those 15%, 91% believed abortion was acceptable in cases of life endangerment, 74% in cases of fetal defects, 72% in cases of risk to health, 71% in cases of rape, 16% if the family could not financially support a child, and 8% if the woman was unmarried. [2]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ TNS Sofres. (May 2005). European Values. Retrieved January 11, 2007.
- ^ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and ORC Macro. (2003). Reproductive, Maternal and Child Health in Eastern Europe and Eurasia: A Comparative Report. Retrieved February 12, 2007.
[edit] External links
(all texts in Czech language)
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