All articles tagged with #misoprostol
A network of women and activists across Latin America has transformed access to safe, self-managed abortions through the dissemination of information and support systems, notably using misoprostol, a drug originally for stomach ulcers, which has become a key tool in circumventing legal restrictions and empowering women to control their reproductive health.
A Massachusetts man, Robert Kawada, has been charged with secretly giving his girlfriend an abortion pill, Misoprostol, to end her pregnancy. Kawada allegedly deceived her by claiming the pills were iron supplements and even staged a fake call from a nurse to convince her. He faces multiple charges, including poisoning and assault, and is being held on $100,000 bail. The case is under investigation by the Middlesex District Attorney's Office and Watertown Police.
A Massachusetts man, Robert Kawada, has been charged with poisoning, assault, and battery after allegedly tricking his ex-girlfriend into taking abortion pills by claiming they were vitamins and iron supplements. Kawada was ordered held on $100,000 bail and must stay away from the victim and wear a GPS device. The victim suffered a miscarriage, and detectives found the pills to be consistent with misoprostol, a medication used to terminate pregnancies.
Louisiana's new law reclassifies abortion pills mifepristone and misoprostol as Schedule IV controlled substances, increasing restrictions and penalties for possession without a prescription. Pregnant women are exempt from prosecution, but others who help them obtain the drugs are not. The law could face legal challenges and may inspire similar legislation in other states.
In states with strict abortion bans, pharmacists face uncertainty and fear of legal action when dispensing misoprostol, a drug used for abortions as well as other medical purposes. The overturning of Roe v. Wade has led to confusion and distress for both pharmacists and patients, with some pharmacists refusing to prescribe misoprostol due to legal concerns. Women have experienced delays in accessing prescribed medications, including misoprostol, even when not seeking abortions, highlighting the impact of these laws on healthcare access.
Mifepristone is a drug used in combination with misoprostol for medication abortion, blocking the hormone progesterone necessary for pregnancy and causing the body to expel the pregnancy. Studies show it is over 99% effective and as safe as a clinic-administered abortion. While the FDA approves its use up to 10 weeks of pregnancy, the World Health Organization suggests it can be used up to 12 weeks. Medication abortion has become more common during the Covid-19 pandemic, and some women in states with abortion restrictions have turned to mail-order pills.
Mifepristone is a drug used in combination with misoprostol to end a pregnancy without surgery, known as medication abortion. It blocks a hormone necessary for pregnancy to continue, while misoprostol brings on uterine contractions to expel the pregnancy. Medication abortion is safe and effective, with low rates of adverse events and high patient satisfaction. It is used for pregnancies up to 10 weeks in the US and up to 12 weeks according to WHO guidelines. About half of legal abortions in the US and three-quarters in Europe use medication abortion, and it is also used illicitly in places with restricted access to legal abortion.
Democratic-led states are stockpiling the abortion pill, mifepristone, after a federal judge in Texas invalidated the FDA's approval of the drug. The judge's decision could affect access to the pill in all states, even where Democrats and voters have acted to secure abortion rights. States are trying to figure out how to prepare for different scenarios in a fast-changing legal landscape. Some states are looking to misoprostol, the second drug in the two-drug regimen, which was not covered in the Texas judge's preliminary ruling.
Misoprostol, a drug used in medication abortion, was not affected by a recent federal judge's ruling invalidating the FDA approval of mifepristone, the first drug used in the regimen. Misoprostol can be prescribed on its own to patients seeking abortions in early pregnancy, an option endorsed by the World Health Organization. Misoprostol is safe and effective, but may cause more side effects than the two-drug regimen. While some groups seek to ban misoprostol for abortion, it remains legally available by prescription at retail pharmacies.
Even if the US FDA's approval of mifepristone is suspended, misoprostol alone can still be used for medication abortion. Misoprostol is considered safe and effective and has been used for decades. California is stockpiling misoprostol in anticipation of the ruling. The two-drug approach is preferable, but misoprostol-only regimens are an acceptable alternative if mifepristone is unavailable. Medication abortion now accounts for more than half of all US abortions.
California has secured an emergency stockpile of up to 2 million pills of Misoprostol, a safe and effective medication abortion drug, in the wake of an extremist judge seeking to block Mifepristone, a critical abortion pill. The state has shared the negotiated terms of its Misoprostol purchase agreement to assist other states in securing Misoprostol at low cost. The move comes after a Texas judge sought to block access to Mifepristone, threatening to severely curb access to safe abortion care. California has also updated its abortion resource website to address questions regarding the Texas court decision and its potential impact on access to medication abortion.
Three US states, California, Massachusetts, and Washington, are stockpiling medication used to induce abortions as a major abortion pill, mifepristone, appears to be potentially unavailable in the country. The states are stocking up on misoprostol, a drug used in combination with mifepristone, which is now the subject of legal battles in federal courts. More than half of abortions in the US are now medication abortions, and the vast majority of those involve the two-drug protocol, which is considered the gold standard here.
Mifepristone, a drug used in medication abortions, is at the center of a lawsuit in Texas that could block access to the drug. Mifepristone blocks the hormone progesterone, which helps maintain the uterus during pregnancy. When taken with misoprostol, it is 99.6% effective in ending a pregnancy. Mifepristone has been shown to be safe and effective for over 23 years and is approved by the FDA. If banned, misoprostol could still be used for medication abortions, but it is less effective when used alone.