(LifeSiteNews) — Abortions in South Carolina fell by 63 percent in 2024, the first full year under the state’s Fetal Heartbeat and Protection from Abortion Act.
According to newly released figures from the South Carolina Department of Public Health, there were 5,162 fewer abortions in 2024, indicating a drop from approximately 8,218 to 3,056. The decline marks the largest single-year reduction since Roe v. Wade was imposed in 1973.
Governor Henry McMaster, who signed the Heartbeat Act into law in 2023, hailed the report as confirmation that the policy is saving lives. “The significant decline in abortions in South Carolina is a clear indication that the Fetal Heartbeat Act is working,” he said Wednesday.
The U.S. Supreme Court also recently upheld McMaster’s decision to disqualify Planned Parenthood from Medicaid funding, tightening financial pressure on the state’s two abortion facilities in Columbia and Charleston. Those facilities reported 1,394 abortions – nearly half of the state’s total last year.
Pro-life leaders credited the legislation not only for the statistical drop but for advancing a broader cultural shift.
“[We] rejoice in these numbers that represent the preservation of precious little lives,” said Lisa Van Riper, president of South Carolina Citizens for Life. “This encouraging report again demonstrates that legislation saves lives and that elections have consequences.”
The report showed that more than 97 percent of abortions occurred before six weeks’ gestation – the point when an unborn baby’s cardiac activity is typically detectable. Twenty-four abortions were committed past 13 weeks. The majority of abortions – 2,552 – were chemical abortions.
Black babies remained disproportionately affected. While black residents make up 26 percent of the state’s population, they accounted for 41 percent of abortions. Planned Parenthood reported aborting 721 black children in 2024.
Linda Plummer of the South Carolina Association of Pregnancy Care Centers noted growing state support for alternatives. “Thanks to their leadership, women facing unplanned pregnancies have access to compassionate, life-affirming care, practical support, and medical services at no cost,” she said.
But while the Heartbeat Act has spared thousands, abortion remains gravely immoral at every stage. And despite the decline in reported killings, untracked chemical abortions are likely increasing.