Russia to increase psychological, social & medical help available to pregnant women as country seeks to reduce abortions by 50%

The Russian authorities are developing plans to boost the quantity of social and psychological assistance available to pregnant women in an attempt to reduce the number of abortions, a cabinet office decree has revealed.

The decree text, published last week, names several possible ways to prevent pregnancy terminations, including medical and legal assistance to women in difficult life situations.

The government intends to increase the percentage of women receiving pre-abortion counseling to 80% by 2025, with the goal of reducing terminations by half.

The document also seeks to implement other measures to promote healthy lifestyles, increase the birth rate, and boost life expectancy.

Earlier this year, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Tatyana Golikova revealed that the number of abortions has dropped almost 40% since 2016, which she believes is mainly due to the work of counselors providing medical and social support for pregnant women.

Last year, veteran politician Vladimir Zhirinovsky proposed that the state pay women extra money to prevent them from having abortions as a means to boost the country's population and prevent the worsening of the demographic crisis.

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