FDA Declares That Abortion Pills Are Now Available at Retail Pharmacies

FDA announced that Walgreens and CVS pharmacies will now be able to provide abortion pills.

Mifepristone is an abortion drug that was available only through doctors, clinics, and some mail-order pharmacy. FDA’s new rule will allow any pharmacy to fill prescription orders in stores or by mail if they follow its guidelines.

“Mifeprex and its generic Mifepristone Tablets, 200 mg, are available under a single, shared system risk evaluation and mitigation strategy (REMS), known as the Mifepristone REMS Program, which sets forth the requirements that must be followed for mifepristone for medical termination of pregnancy through ten weeks gestation,” The FDA participated in a Tuesday sharing update.

Mifepristone should not be purchased online without a prescription by the FDA.

“The FDA does not have regulatory oversight of prescription medicines from outside the legitimate U.S. drug supply chain; therefore, the FDA cannot ensure the safety, effectiveness, or quality of those medications,” The guidance was noted.

According According to the Guttmacher Institute (USA), 54% of all U.S. abortions occurred in 2020. This percentage will likely rise as more abortion pills are available at retail pharmacies.

Following a year of significant reforms to abortion policies, the FDA has released a new update. The Supreme Court ruled in June that the FDA update was valid. Roe v. Wade Individual states may also return abortion laws.

Thirteen states had trigger laws that further limited abortion following the court’s decision. Many other states also passed legislation following the ruling to tighten restrictions on abortion.

There have been court battles since then. Some new limitations on abortion were put on hold until the cases are resolved.

Mississippi is one of the states that have already banned abortion pills. Mississippi Republican Governor. Tate Reeves stated in July that Mississippi’s doctors would lose their medical licenses to prescribe abortion pills.

“If a physician is practicing medicine in the state of Mississippi, they have to have a license to do so and if abortion is illegal in our state, which it is, then those medicines will not be allowed and they will not have a license to practice in our state,” Reeves said In July.

“Any physician that is practicing, whether it’s through telemedicine or otherwise… that practices in our state is practicing not only based upon the standards of care that we require in our state, but also based upon state law,” He concluded.

Kristi Noem (South Dakota Republican Governor) also signed a bill Telemedicine abortion to be banned in March

“With this bill, we will protect both unborn babies and their mothers from this dangerous procedure,” Noem wrote.

There are currently 18 states “require the clinician providing a medication abortion to be physically present when the medication is administered, thereby prohibiting the use of telemedicine to prescribe medication for abortion,” Guttmacher Institute reported.

Texas has a ban of medication abortion for seven days, while Indiana has one for ten weeks.

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