The Money, Influence, and Human Toll Should Move Us To Act
We often hear the issue of abortion talked about in terms of choice, health care and women’s rights. These words are used to gloss over the harsh, underlying reality of the abortion industry.
Since 1973, more than 64 million lives have been lost to abortion in the United States. That’s not just a statistic — it’s the equivalent of wiping out an entire generation.
Now zoom out.
Globally, in 2024 alone, abortion accounted for an estimated 45.1 million deaths. More than cancer, HIV, traffic accidents and suicide combined. Even more than the total lives lost in World War I.
Those numbers should stop us in our tracks.
How can a society that was founded on Christian principles, freedom and the pursuit of LIFE, liberty and the pursuit of happiness still allow the cold-blooded killing of the most innocent among us?
But here’s the uncomfortable truth: behind those numbers is an industry. And like any industry, it runs on money.
Following the money
Planned Parenthood, the largest abortion provider in the United States, has made preying on vulnerable women and the lives of the unborn a business.
Their latest reports show:
- $2.1 billion in annual revenue
- Nearly $2.5 billion in net assets
- And about $832 million of that revenue comes directly from taxpayers
That means roughly one out of every three dollars funding the organization still comes from public money.
No matter where you stand on the issue, that’s not small. That’s not neutral. That’s a massive, sustained financial engine.
And when you look at what’s happening inside that engine, their ideology gets clearer.
Over the past decade:
- Prenatal care services have dropped by 56%
- Cancer screenings have decreased 43%
- But abortions? They’ve climbed to a record 434,450 in a single year. Seventy percent of those are now done through mail-order drugs.
And here’s one of the most telling ratios: for every one adoption referral, there are 143 abortions performed.
This is not women’s health care. This is systematic murder.
But what does it cost women?
Because here’s the part that often gets lost. For all the talk about women’s rights, the mothers are the ones often left paying the toll of a heartbreaking decision for years afterward.
Data shows that the physical and emotional toll that abortion has on the mother is tremendous.
Abortions are now most often done by a woman all alone in their bathroom, by taking a drug. A procedure that the pro-abortion community describes as simple and easy.
But the reality is very different.
According to FDA data, up to 4.6% of women who take the abortion pill end up in the emergency room. And even that may be underreported since the same study shows that 84% of abortion-related ER visits are miscoded, meaning they’re not even tracked as abortion complications.
But if the physical toll is concerning, the emotional toll is even harder to ignore.
Studies show that more than one in three women who have an abortion experience depression following the procedure.
Other research has linked abortion to increased anxiety, higher rates of substance abuse and elevated risks of suicidal behavior.
And here’s something that should give us all pause: Nearly 70% of women report feeling pressured, coerced or conflicted about their decision.
And the impact doesn’t just fade with time. Studies suggest that around 40% of women experience prolonged grief, sometimes lasting years — even decades. Some say they feel “haunted” by the experience.
This is the side of abortion that rarely makes headlines.
So, what is the real cost of abortion?
Abortion is a system generating billions in revenue, supported by hundreds of millions in taxpayer funding annually, and performing hundreds of thousands of abortions each year.
And at the same time, a significant percentage of women experience emotional and psychological consequences, physical complications, and a large number carry a burden that extends far beyond the procedure itself.
The real cost of abortion isn’t just measured in dollars.
It’s measured in lives, in stories and in lasting impact.
But the other side of this reality is that it costs money to save lives and support the mothers in their time of need.
How can I help?
The good news is that there are organizations out there that are stepping into the need, not only saving lives but ministering to the mothers who find themselves at a crossroads.
For years, PreBorn! has stepped into that space. Not with arguments, but with presence.
They meet mothers right where they are: in the fear, the confusion, the pressure.
Through free ultrasounds, they give a mother something powerful — a chance to meet their baby. And that moment changes things. When a woman sees her baby, hears the heartbeat, it’s no longer theoretical. It’s personal.
But they don’t stop there. They also provide what many women are missing in that moment: practical support, emotional care and Gospel truth.
This Mother’s Day, Financial Issues is seeking to make motherhood possible for 10,000 moms across America by providing them with a free ultrasound that 80% of the time results in a mom choosing life. By supporting PreBorn!, you’re not just giving money. You’re helping a mother pause, see clearly, and realize she’s not alone. Click here to make your Mother’s Day gift and help make motherhood possible.
Michael Cardinal is CEO of Financial Issues (FISM), a radio/TV broadcast ministry focused on helping believers be good stewards of their resources and to invest with biblical integrity. He previously served as the editor-in-chief of FISM News. Michael lives in Pennsylvania with his wife and four children
