Do you want to avoid the hassle of traveling with your printed poster? IAPHS2026 is pleased to make poster printing available to you through our supplier PosterSessionOnline. Your poster will be professionally reviewed, printed and shipped directly to Portland and you will be able to pick it up from the Poster desk. Click here to learn more.
Primary Submission Category: Reproductive health
When Miscarriage Becomes a Crime: Media Representations of Pregnancy Loss Criminalization in the Post-Dobbs United States
Authors: Taylor Riley,
Presenting Author: Taylor Riley*
Pregnancy criminalization is a growing public health issue in the United States. Since the Supreme Court Dobbs decision, a growing number of women have been investigated, arrested, and prosecuted for how they navigate pregnancy loss, including miscarriage and stillbirth. Pregnancy loss is common; approximately one in four known pregnancies end in miscarriage. Rather than receiving support and health care following these common medical events, women have been increasingly charged with crimes such as “abuse of a corpse” or murder. These cases can be highly publicized, which has implications for people’s legal and medical understanding of pregnancy loss. Media representations of criminalized pregnancy loss may contribute to fear, medical mistrust, and uncertainty around healthcare seeking. This study qualitatively examines how pregnancy loss criminalization is depicted in print news media after the June 2022 Dobbs decision. Using ProQuest news-related databases and key search terms, we identified 5,068 newspaper/news articles from June 24, 2022 to February 28, 2026 in our initial search. After removing duplicates and screening for relevance, we selected 91 articles that met inclusion criteria. Preliminary findings from our content analysis suggest media coverage often prioritizes preliminary law enforcement reports over the criminalized individual’s account. Reporting often equates a fetus, regardless of gestational age, as an unborn child with legal rights. These findings will have implications for clinical care and public health messaging to counter misinformation, clarify legality and legal resources, and rebuild trust in seeking health care for pregnancy loss.