New York state officials press pharmacies to dispense abortion pills

Gov. Kathy Hochul Letitia James, state attorney general and Senator from New York (D-NY), are urging pharmaceutical chains to agree to dispense a major amount of drugs. abortion drug In the state.

State officials asked WalgreensCVS Health, Rite Aid and Rite Aid have pledged to give mifepristone to patients who present a prescription from a doctor in their pharmacies. This is the first of two abortion-inducing medications used to end a 10-week-old pregnancy.

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“We write to you today to ask that you commit to making medication abortion available in your retail and mail-order pharmacies across New York State,” Submitted Hochul and James in a note to CEOs at the major pharmaceutical chains. “Even as access to this medication is under threat elsewhere for political reasons, we remind you that New York’s law is simple. Abortion is legal and protected as a fundamental right under state law, and there are no legal barriers to dispensing mifepristone in New York pharmacies.”

The move comes after Walgreens indicated that it will not seek certification from Food and Drug Administration to dispense abortion medication in states where the procedure is legal. This was in spite of the threat by Republican attorneys general to take legal action in those states.

“We have responded to the state attorneys general letter to Walgreens dated February 1 b