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Walgreens said it won’t dispense abortion pills in Indiana after Attorney General Todd Rokita and 19 other attorneys general threatened legal action if the pharmacy company sells the pills by mail.
The group of 20 Republican attorneys general warned CVS and Walgreens in a letter last month that they could face legal consequences if they sell abortion pills by mail in their states. That was shortly after the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) rule change that broadens availability for the pills.
My office and 19 other AGs were clear in our letter to Walgreens that pharmacies WILL be held accountable if they sell abortion pills by mail. This is great news for our state and in helping protect unborn babies & women’s health. https://t.co/kv5tNU5i9M
— AG Todd Rokita (@AGToddRokita) March 4, 2023
The letter was penned by Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey and cosigned by attorneys general in Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, and West Virginia.
Walgreens has since responded to the letter, saying it will not dispense the abortion pill mifepristone in those states — including Indiana.
“Walgreens does not intend to dispense Mifepristone within your state and does not intend to ship Mifeprstone into your state from any of our pharmacies. If this approach changes, we will be sure to notify you,” the letter sent to Rokita and other attorneys general said.
Indiana lawmakers passed a near-total abortion ban last year that was in effect for just a week in September before a Republican judge in Owen County issued a first temporary injunction in a lawsuit that challenges the constitutionality of the law based on liberty and privacy protections.
The decision put the ban on hold while Indiana Supreme Court justices continue to weigh the case. Under that injunction, the state’s previous abortion law stands — allowing abortions up to 20 weeks.
Walgreens said last month that it was not dispensing mifepristone at any locations but was working to get certified by the FDA to do so. The pharmacy chain now says it’s still taking steps to sell the drug in “jurisdictions where it is legal and operationally feasible.”
The FDA ruled in January that retail pharmacies can get certified to dispense mifepristone and agree to accept prescriptions from certified providers if they meet standards in shipping, tracking and confidentially storing drug-prescribing records.
The process requires pharmacies to meet specific standards for shipping and tracking, as well as ensuring confidential storage of drug prescribing records.
Mifepristone is FDA-approved to terminate pregnancies of up to 10 weeks, when used with a second drug, misoprostol.
More than half of U.S. abortions are now done with pills rather than surgery, according to the Guttmacher Institute, a research group that supports abortion rights.
The Indiana Capital Chronicle is an independent, not-for-profit news organization that covers state government, policy and elections.
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For those that want/need them, will find a way. Maybe Mexico or some other means, most likely not as safe as buying from a reputable pharmacy. Just another problem created.
David’s point is apt. Laws don’t solve every problem. Some want the freedom to do what they want to do, while also being able to dictate how other people should live.
Those who have the means will always be able to have access. If you do not have the means, you’re at the mercy of those who think this allows them to sleep better at night.
62% of US adults say abortion should be legal in all or most cases. 71% support free contraception. But let’s spend our time writing letters to Walgreens instead supporting women’s healthcare.
Plus 1
“Great news for women’s health”? Hahaha
Thank you Walgreens for not participating in the death of our unborn children.
More accurately, thank you Walgreens to caving to bully pressure by Republican AGs.
A medication abortion can be used up to 11 weeks of pregnancy. At that point, it’s not an unborn child. It’s a fetus that is not viable outside of the uterus. The majority of abortions in the US are medication abortions. About 75% of abortion patients are low-income and nearly 60% of US women of reproductive age live in states where access to abortion is restricted. If you want fewer abortions, make contraception a priority for all women.
Walgreens took a stand on what they think is right. Evidently they felt it
was within the best interest of their company.
Walgreens is a large national corporation. So I doubt that the conservatives
in Indiana had anything to do with their decision.
Many of these same commenters complaining about the Walgreens decision
had no problem with corporations taking leftwing WOKE stances on issues.
Leftwing issues that were false and rediculious p.
Walgreens backed away from a legal threat from 19 AGs. They still sell cigarettes, so I don’t think they took a stand on anything.
David
Walgreens sells alcohol, cigarettes, and junk food. So what??
A medication abortion can be used up to 11 weeks of pregnancy. At that point, it’s not an unborn child. It’s a fetus that is not viable outside of the uterus. The majority of abortions in the US are medication abortions. About 75% of abortion patients are low-income and nearly 60% of US women of reproductive age live in states where access to abortion is restricted. If you want fewer abortions, make contraception a priority for all women.
Walgreens sells alcohol, cigarettes, and junk food. So what??
There’s a big difference selling cigarettes verses selling abortion pills.
Correct, there is a huge difference.
480,000 die in the USA each year from cigarettes. The 5th leading cause of death.
0 die from abortion pills.