The current cost of raising a child to the age of 18 is roughly $310,000. That means the cost for raising these 930,000 newly-born children (calculated in Part 1 of of this series)  – excluding the 9% that we are assuming are adopted – could reach as high as $270 billion.

Who is going to pay this cost?

The women who birth them would have to bear the cost of this responsibility. They have already decided they – and their families – are not in a position to do so. Already, 47.5% of single mothers live in poverty. One in eight children in America faces hunger and food insecurity. Unfortunately, the United States pays the lowest level of financial support for young child care of all developed nations, and as recently as 2018 was the only country among 41 peers that did not require paid leave for parents.

Raised in families that already have an economic disadvantage, these children will be far more likely to receive inadequate health care and education, and experience a lack of stability. These factors, in turn, mean that they are less likely to grow up to become functioning members of society.

Let’s look a little deeper into that statement. We now understand the human and fiscal cost when children experience adverse childhood events (ACE): violence or neglect, exposure to substance abuse problems, instability in the home, lack of proper food and housing. Children who experience ACEs are more likely to experience mental health problems, have difficulty holding jobs and building stable families, suffer from health problems themselves, and engage in substance abuse—in short, they are not fully functioning members of society or the work force. The problems they suffer as adults are painful to them, AND are costly to society overall.

While we can’t predict how many of these children will experience ACEs, the statistics indicate the likelihood is substantial. It is a cost and a consequence that must be weighed when evaluating what respecting life really means, and what it might cost all of us if there is not a plan for the consequences of banning abortion.

What now? Stay tuned for Part 3, coming next week.

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