United States: CVS and Walgreens have been accredited and are scheduled to vaccinate Mifepristone, a special drug that is used in a regimen for medication abortions, in a limited number of stores in some of the states where it’s legal.
Production of Mifepristone starts soon
As CVC stated, it would start filing prescriptions for Mifepristone in Massachusetts and Rhode Island “in the weeks ahead” and further plans to expand it to more states “where allowed by law, on a rolling basis.”
According to CNN Health reports, Walgreens plans to start dispensing the drug mifepristone in the next week, “consistent with federal and state laws,” in select cities, New York, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, California, and Illinois.
The pharmacy giant announced it’s launching a phased rollout “to allow us to ensure quality, safety, and privacy for our patients, providers, and team members.”
Additionally, both pharmacy chains commented their pharmacy already dispenses misoprostol, the second medication requested in medical abortion regimens.
Common method of abortion in the US
The most commonly used method of abortion in the US is medicinal-based abortion, supported by the data obtained from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
It has already obtained its approval by the FDA and is now being utilized from the first ten weeks of pregnancy.
Legal challenges faced by Mifepristone
In the US, Mifepristone has been at the focus point of legal challenges in the United States, and the court will consider whether to limit access to it with a decision coming by the end of July.
In January 2023, the FDA released a revision of its guidelines on whether Mifepristone can be dispensed while allowing the drug to be given by “certified pharmacies on a prescription issued by a certified prescriber.”
Before that, prescribers who had been certified by the FDA could directly give the medication to their patients at a clinic or hospital during the so-called “in-person dispensing requirement,” reported CNN Health.
The drug was also available in mail-order pharmacies as the FDA stated it would not enforce the in-person requirement during the pandemic.
What does the President have to say?
President Joe Biden noted that this step was significant in the process of making Mifepristone, an FDA-approved drug that has been established as safe and effective for more than 20 years, become readily available for more patients.
Adding further, “I encourage all pharmacies that want to pursue this option to seek certification.”
As CNN Health reported, Biden also mentioned that the prospects “could not be higher for women across America” and promised that “in the face of relentless attacks on reproductive freedom by Republican elected officials” his administration Thus, his administration will continue relentlessly to reverse the multiple attacks on women’s Reproductive Rights by the state legislators post Roe v Wade.
The Biden campaign aims to put abortion and contraceptive access as a significant policy of their 2024 campaign, with Vice President Kamala Harris especially going on a reproductive freedom touring trip around the country.