Abortion Pill Access
The abortion pill is safe and easy—and it could give American women unprecedented reproductive autonomy. Its political opponents have spent over a decade ensuring this doesn't happen - Gabby Bess
image by: Rep. Jimmy Gomez
HWN Recommends
The Abortion Pill was Supposed to Revolutionize Abortion Access. What Happened?
Mifepristone was supposed to give women more control over their bodies, their families, and their health by expanding their choices and privacy. It was seen as the holy grail that would thwart abortion foes, who, as always, had been working hard to overturn Roe v. Wade and complicate abortion access: "With RU-486," as the pill was known at the time, "termination of early pregnancy will be done medically, not surgically, under conditions that will make it largely impossible to stop," a Chicago Tribune article from 1992 professed. Some advocates had hoped the abortion pill would be available directly through pharmacies and eventually over-the-counter, like Plan B.
Clearly, this hasn't…
Resources
Supreme Court Allows Abortion Pill Mifepristone to Stay on the Market
Justices block lower-court order that would have imposed new limits on drug.
Abortion pill case: what does the supreme court order mean and what comes next?
For the moment, mifepristone has not been banned and access remains unaffected as the case proceeds. Misoprostol, the second drug commonly administered alongside mifepristone to induce a medical abortion, is not at issue in this lawsuit.
Appeals Court Upholds Legality of Abortion Pill but With Significant Restrictions
The restrictions, which would prevent mifepristone from being mailed to patients and would require in-person doctor visits, are on hold until the Supreme Court weighs in.
Health Care Without Mifepristone? “The Experience for Patients Is Going to Be Awful.”
The alternative medication abortion option brings worse side effects—and less efficacy.
Opinion: Mifepristone saved my life
When I was prescribed mifepristone, it had not yet taken center stage in America’s abortion wars. I did not have to make a rushed road trip across state lines to get my medicine, unlike many women who need the drug but live in one of the many states that have restricted access to medication abortion or passed near-total bans on abortion.
Politics, Not Science, Will Win the Battle for Mifepristone
From AIDS to Covid, the history of regulation shows that we need facts — but also direct action.
What's next for the abortion pill mifepristone?
Access to a common abortion medication currently hangs in the balance in a pair of contradictory decisions by federal judges, setting the stage for the most significant legal action on abortion since the overturning of Roe v. Wade last year. Mifepristone is widely used across the U.S. to end pregnancy in the first 10 weeks of gestation. About half of all abortions nationwide are performed using mifepristone as the first of a two-pill regimen. The drug is also commonly used to help manage miscarriages.
A Drug That Eases Miscarriages Is Difficult For Women To Get
It's been heavily regulated since it was approved by the Food and Drug Administration for medication abortions in 2000. Government restrictions make it difficult for women who are miscarrying to get it.
Merrick Garland's Mention of the FDA Hints at One Possible Way to Fight Restrictions on Abortion Pills
Garland’s mention of the FDA approval of the drug is a nod toward the federal preemption argument, says Rachel Rebouché, interim dean of Temple University Beasley School of Law. That argument is based on the premise that where federal and state laws conflict, the federal law prevails.
Politicizing Safety Of The Abortion Pill Mifeprex
The letter sent by Senator Cruz et al. to the FDA reflects their opposition to abortion, and to Mifeprex’s approval in the first place. In the letter, the senators returned to the 20-year old controversy surrounding approval of mifepristone. Specifically, they objected to the drug having been approved through “an accelerated approval process normally reserved for high-risk drugs that address life-threatening illnesses like AIDS.”
The Abortion Pill Is Safer Than Tylenol and Almost Impossible to Get
Mifepristone could—but probably won’t—revolutionize a post-Roe world.
The FDA holds the key to expanding abortion access
About a month ago in Mexico City, I walked into a pharmacy to see how easy it would be to buy misoprostol, a drug for ulcers that is also used to induce abortions. Very easy, it turned out: All I had to do was ask for the drug and pay 699 Mexican pesos (about $35), no questions asked.
Why anti-abortion groups are citing the ideas of a 19th-century 'vice reformer'
A federal case challenging access to a common abortion pill is reviving discussions about a 150-year-old anti-obscenity law. In 1873, what's known as the Comstock Act banned multiple items related to sex and reproductive health that many people see as quite ordinary today. Until recently, that law had been largely forgotten or ignored. But it's being cited in the federal case out of Texas that could curb access to the widely used abortion pill mifepristone.
The Abortion Pill was Supposed to Revolutionize Abortion Access. What Happened?
The history of the abortion pill is fraught from the start. In 1980, a French pharmaceutical company, Roussel-Uclaf, developed the medication abortion drug, which works by blocking the effects of progesterone, a hormone essential to maintaining pregnancy.
StatPearls
Mifepristone is a synthetic steroid. It is a medication most commonly used for medically induced abortions. Mifepristone can also be used in the management and treatment of Cushing's syndrome and uterine leiomyomas. At low doses, mifepristone blocks progesterone by competitively binding its intracellular receptor.
Introducing Stitches!
Your Path to Meaningful Connections in the World of Health and Medicine
Connect, Collaborate, and Engage!
Coming Soon - Stitches, the innovative chat app from the creators of HWN. Join meaningful conversations on health and medical topics. Share text, images, and videos seamlessly. Connect directly within HWN's topic pages and articles.
