By: Ethan Tu

Following the Supreme Court’s decision on Friday, June 24, which overturned the legal right to abortion in the United States, there was a significant increase in appointment requests for Just the Pill, a nonprofit organization that helps patients obtain abortion pills through the mail or from clinical sites.

Abortion pills, a method considered as medication abortion, was authorized by the F.D.A over 20 years ago for use in the first 10 weeks of pregnancy. Before the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, abortion pills were already used in over half of abortions in the U.S. This is due to their cheap price and increased privacy compared to surgical abortions. They are also much easier to access, which will increase their popularity in the next few years.

Experts point out that it is much harder to enforce bans on medication abortion than surgical abortion, because patients can receive abortion pills through the mail or pick them up in states that allow abortions, and then use them in the privacy of their home.

For patients who are too far into their pregnancy, Abortion Delivered, a clinic-on-wheels program, can provide them surgical abortions from nearby states where abortions are legal.

Anti-abortion groups trying to reduce interest in abortion pills have claimed that the medication abortion is unsafe. The vice president of data analytics at Charlotte Lozier Institute, James Studnicki, stated “the safety of the abortion pill is greatly exaggerated,” and went on to say that the rise of medication abortion poses a “serious public health threat.”

Xavier Becerra, the secretary of Health and Human Services, vowing to protect the right to take medications that had been approved by the federal government, said, “we stand unwavering in our commitment to ensure every American has access to health care and the ability to make decisions about health care – including the right to safe and legal abortion, such as medication abortion.”

The future of medication abortions remains unknown, as states begin passing more laws restricting access to abortions, and the government tries to stop patients from receiving abortion pills through the mail or traveling to other states.

Sources:

https://s3.amazonaws.com/appforest_uf/f1656283369075x492197126305831100/Abortion%20Pills%20Take%20the%20Spotlight%20as%20States%20Impose%20Abortion%20Bans%20-%20The%20New%20York%20Times.pdf

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/roe-v-wade-overturn-trigger-laws-supreme-court-abortion-states-rights/