Pregnancy is a well-documented risk factor for intimate partner violence (IPV), with homicide reported as a leading cause of death for pregnant and postpartum women in the United States. As abortion policy has shifted in the wake of Dobbs v. Jackson (the ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade), researchers have begun examining how abortion access intersects with IPV in a post-Roe world. The sudden changes in abortion access have created an environment rich with data that has built on earlier research linking reproductive policy to IPV risk.

Any clinician caring for people who can become pregnant should understand how abortion access can affect patient safety, but these findings are particularly relevant for those practicing in states with strict regulations. Awareness of how reproductive policy influences IPV can ensure health care professionals use vigilance when screening for abuse, recognizing patients who may need support, and connecting them with appropriate resources.

Pregnancy as a risk factor for intimate partner violence

Although all genders and ages in varying types of partnerships can experience IPV, statistics show that the most common demographic for victims is young women aged 18 to 24. The abuse can be physical, psychological, or sexual, and includes both coercive and overt acts of violence. This definition also covers reproductive coercion, where one partner exerts control over another’s reproductive independence through interfering with access to birth control, applying excessive pressure to conceive, or forcing an unwanted pregnancy termination.

According to public health researchers, over two-thirds of women who experience IPV while pregnant were already being harmed before conceiving; yet violence tends to escalate during pregnancy and the postpartum period due to the immense stress of starting a family. Because IPV is often predicated on the abuser’s desire to maintain power over their partner, the extensive rearranging of relationship dynamics and lifestyle changes can signal a loss of control. As a result, the victim becomes more vulnerable, while the perpetrator can become more volatile.

Pregnancy creates a situation in which women’s physical, financial, and emotional dependency grows, therefore reducing exit options. Policies that improve reproductive autonomy, like abortion access (among others), can help neutralize these risks by facilitating greater personal control over education, finances, and intimate relationships, all of which impact one’s ability to leave or avoid unsafe environments. In healthy relationships, this dependence can build connection and trust, but in a toxic partnership, it amplifies risk.

Evidence from before and after Dobbs

A 2025 study published in the Journal of Health Economics looked at IPV incidents reported to law enforcement from 2017 to 2023 and found that abortion bans or near-total bans triggered after Dobbs v. Jackson increased the rate of IPV for reproductive-aged women by about 7 to 10 percent. Researchers estimated at least 9,000 additional IPV incidents in states with bans, resulting in an estimated $1.24 billion in community costs. Earlier research has also linked abortion restrictions to higher rates of IPV, suggesting that prohibitive abortion policies are consistently associated with increased violence within intimate partnerships.

One earlier study done before the overturning of Roe v. Wade looked at women and girls for six years and found that for every law a state enacted restricting abortion providers, the state’s rate of IPV-related homicides increased by approximately 3.4 percent. This study only assessed fatalities among women and female children entangled in the violence and did not collect data on other types of harm or male children. The youngest victim was a ten-year-old girl.

Another study reviewed data from over 1.3 million women who had recently given birth across states with both restrictive and lenient abortion policies. The study reported that those living in highly regulated states had a 1.66 percent higher chance of reporting domestic violence during pregnancy compared to their peers in more abortion-tolerant states. Reports were slightly higher among Black women than among white women.

Clinical and public health implications

Although these studies focus on the relationship between abortion access and IPV, violence within intimate relationships is a complex public health crisis shaped by overlapping systemic factors that no single piece of legislation will eliminate. However, with the dismantling of federal abortion protections, the U.S. toppled fifty years of reproductive rights and impeded progress toward reducing relationship violence.

There are currently seventeen states with a total or near-total abortion ban. By limiting reproductive autonomy, these policies strip women and girls of a critical tool for mitigating their risk of harm and even death. As lawmakers across states continue reshaping reproductive policy, its effects should be evaluated not only through the lens of reproductive health care but also as a matter of violence prevention.

Meghan Johnston is a laboratory scientist.