Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
FDA Steady On Abortion Pills: Rejects Pushes To Widen, Restrict Access
The Hill: FDA Rejects Petitions On Abortion Pills From Left- And Right-Leaning Groups
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) this week denied two citizen petitions from groups related to accessing mifepristone, a drug used in medication abortion. The petitions came from a conservative group seeking to restrict the use of the drug, and also from a medical group seeking to expand its use for a new indication. In denying both, the agency appears to be holding its ground on abortion pills, which have rapidly become the newest flashpoint in the fight over abortion. (Weixel, 1/5)
Politico: FDA Stays The Course On Abortion Pills, Rejecting Demands From The Left And Right
The FDA rejected a demand from the anti-abortion group Students for Life to prohibit most prescriptions via telemedicine and revert back to the 2011 restrictions on the drug that the FDA has loosened by allowing the pill to be prescribed over the phone, sent by mail, and picked up at a local pharmacy. ... The FDA also rejected a petition from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) to make the pills easier to obtain for patients using them to treat a miscarriage rather than an elective abortion. (Ollstein, 1/5)
Also —
The Boston Globe: The FDA Allowed Pharmacies To Dispense Abortion Pills. But Will They Do It?
Mike Wilson, president of the Massachusetts Independent Pharmacists Association, said that he expects that most of the state’s approximately 80 independent community pharmacies will take on the task. “This will be a huge step toward increasing access and personal autonomy,” said Rebecca Hart Holder, president of Reproductive Equity Now, a Massachusetts-based advocacy group. “This mainstreams abortion care.” (Freyer, 1/5)
