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In a new study released by the Guttmacher Institute, the percentage of poor women getting abortions has increased almost 60 percent in the past decade. That's a huge jump — and a writer for The Washington Post says the reason is clear. 

"[Earlier this year] a study found that financial concerns from the recession had prompted more women to delay childbearing or limit the number of children they have... and there have been a lot of anecdotal reports about the recession prompting more women to get abortions."

A writer for Salon.com tentatively suggests health care reform could give women more options.

"It will be interesting to see how the health care bill, which prohibits the use of federal funds for elective abortions, will impact these figures. The most optimistic prediction is that broader health care coverage will mean better access to birth control."

But on HLN's The Joy Behar Show, feminist and political activist Gloria Steinem says there's another factor at play — poor education. 

"Part of the reason we have this enormous unwanted pregnancy rate... is because they don't know about the pill. They don't know about other birth control methods. We've had abstinence-only education, which doesn't work. Which increases the number of abortions, which increases the number of unwanted pregnancies."

And one writer for The Philadelphia Inquirer says recession or no recession, the findings are cause for concern.

"This is disturbing information for people on both sides of the abortion debate who agree that the procedure should be less common. The best public policies would ensure that fewer women believe they have no other choice."

So what do you make of these figures? Is the recession to blame?