Medication abortion, often called the abortion pill, is a safe and effective way to end a pregnancy. CORE has prepared a new brief summarizing recent changes in federal policy that impact access to medication abortion.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recently made changes affecting one of two abortion pills: mifepristone.
The FDA approved mifepristone for abortion and miscarriage care in 2000, but, due to political, not scientific, concerns, it imposed several restrictions on its use. These rules required that the pill be given in-person to the patient in a clinic, medical office, or hospital under the direct supervision of a certified clinician. Patients were unable to access mifepristone from retail or mail-order pharmacies.
On January 3, 2023, the FDA changed its policy so that certified pharmacies can now dispense mifepristone to patients with a prescription from a certified prescriber for abortion and miscarriage care. A patient can now fill a mifepristone prescription at a “brick-and-mortar” pharmacy, or by mail from a mail-order pharmacy, as with most other FDA-approved medications.
In states where abortion is legal, this change will make obtaining medication abortion easier.
But the rule change will have no impact on access in Wisconsin, where abortion is no longer available since the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.
Read the brief here to learn more about the FDA rule change and other legal and policy challenges that may affect medication abortion access in the near future.