A new survey has found that more than 50% of abortions in the US are pill abortions. It has increased from previous years, as abortion pills became more commonly available and surgical abortions grew more difficult to get.
Fifty-four percent of abortions administered in 2020 involved the two-pill method as opposed to a surgical procedure, according to a survey published on Thursday by the Guttmacher Institute, an abortion-rights advocacy research group.
What are pill abortions?
Mifepristone, the main drug, prevents a hormone required for pregnancy to continue. It is used first, followed by misoprostol, a medicine that produces cramping and causes the womb to empty one or two days later. The combination is only permissible for use during the first ten weeks of pregnancy. Some health care professionals offer it in the second trimester, which is known as off-label use.
The figures were up from 2017 when Guttmacher reported that medication-assisted abortions accounted for 39% of all abortions. Every three years, the study group collects data from abortion providers in the United States. Medication abortion, according to abortion rights advocates, is critical to the future of abortion access in the United States. It allows women who live far from clinics to end their pregnancies without incurring substantial travel and financial costs.
The new increase “is not surprising, especially during COVID-19,’’ said Dr. Marji Gold, a family medicine physician and abortion provider in New York City. She said patients seeking abortions at her clinic have long chosen the pills over the medical procedure.
Not all states allow prescriptions via phone calls
Last December, the FDA made the move permanent, allowing millions of women to obtain a prescription via online consultation and receive the pills via mail. As a result of this development, abortion opponents have increased their efforts in state legislatures to impose new limits on pharmaceutical abortions. However, certain jurisdictions’ regulations make pharmaceutical abortion much more difficult to get. In 19 states, the doctor prescribing the tablets must be physically available. Thus telemedicine is not an option.
Nonetheless, the significant increase in pill abortions, their acceptance, and their availability have made life much easier for pregnant women.
