Following threats of legal action from 20 attorneys general, Walgreens announced that it would not dispense the abortion pill in certain states, illustrating the importance of enforcing existing laws and taking a firm stand against the expansion of chemical abortions.
The Food and Drug Administration announced on January 3 that it had modified regulations for mifepristone, allowing certified pharmacies to dispense the drug. Both Walgreens and CVS released statements revealing their plans to distribute the pill.
In February, Attorney General Andrew Bailey of Missouri led the others in sending letters to Walgreens and CVS, writing to the heads of both companies as the “principal legal and law enforcement officers” of their respective states.
The letters were signed by the attorneys general of Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, and West Virginia.
“We emphasize that it is our responsibility as State Attorneys General to uphold the law and protect the health, safety, and well-being of women and unborn children in our states,” the coalition wrote. “Part of that responsibility includes ensuring that companies like yours are fully informed of the law so that harm does not come to our citizens.”
Walgreens said it would not sell abortion pills in stores or by mail in those states. While abortion is illegal in states like Kentucky, Mississippi, South Dakota, Texas, and West Virginia, the pharmacy chain stated that it wouldn’t sell the drug even in areas where abortion is still legal.
“We are not dispensing Mifepristone at this time. We intend to become a certified pharmacy under the program, however we will only dispense in those jurisdictions where it is legal to do if we are certified,” Fraser Engerman, Walgreens’ senior director of external relations, said.
States must continue fighting against the expansion of the dangerous chemical abortion pill regimen and protect the lives of women and their preborn children. Deregulated abortion pill practices increase the risk of a woman taking the drug without realizing her pregnancy is ectopic. As a result, she may mistake the bleeding that she’s experiencing for side effects from the abortion pill, not realizing that her life is in danger and that she needs immediate care.
A 2009 study titled “Immediate complications after medical compared with surgical termination of pregnancy” found that chemical abortions have four times the complication rate of surgical abortions.
In addition, a 2021 peer-reviewed longitudinal study conducted by the Charlotte Lozier Institute assessed the rate of emergency room visits following a chemical or surgical abortion from 2022 to 2015. The study found that by 2015, 60.9% of emergency room visits due to chemical abortion pill complications were miscoded as miscarriages.
The abortion industry cannot be allowed to bring its life-ending practices to everyday businesses like retail pharmacy stores. That’s why Reprotection is working tirelessly at the local level to safeguard communities from this exploitative industry; because we know if we don’t, innocent preborn children and their mothers will suffer due to a lack of action.