Atlanta - The percentage of US pregnancies ending in legal abortions has fallen to its lowest level since the mid-1970s.
The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said that in 1995, the latest year for which figures were available, there were 311 legal abortions per 1,000 live births, the lowest level since 1976.
Among women aged 15 to 44, it said, there were 20 abortions per 1,000 women, the lowest rate since 1975.
Possible reasons given for the decline include "potential reduced access to abortion services, attitudinal changes concerning the decision to have an abortion or carry a pregnancy to term and a reduction in the number of unintended pregnancies that was noted in the mid-1990s".