Abortion in Laos was on the whole illegal before 2021, when the law was changed to allow the termination of pregnancy in certain circumstances. [1]
Under the new legislation, abortion is permitted in the cases of: [2]
In general, Laotian people have negative associations with abortion. A study published in 2020 suggested that only one in three Laotian adolescents were aware of induced abortion. Of those, however, 71% believed that the decision to have an abortion should be the woman's personal choice. [3]