Are they safe?
Medication abortion involves two drugs, taken over a day or two. The first, mifepristone, blocks the pregnancy-sustaining hormone progesterone. The second, misoprostol, induces uterine contractions.
When taken together, the pills halt the pregnancy and prompt cramping and bleeding to empty the uterus, in a process similar to miscarriage.
Abortion rights activists say the pills have a long track record of being safe and effective, with no risk of overdose or addiction. In several countries, including India and Mexico, women can buy mifepristone and misoprostol without a prescription to induce abortion.
“Medication abortion really does meet all the FDA criteria for an over-the-counter switch,” said Antonia Biggs, associate professor at the University of California, San Francisco’s obstetrics, gynecology and reproductive sciences department.
A recent study by Ms. Biggs and colleagues found that the majority of participants would understand a medication abortion over-the-counter label. Ms. Biggs said she was not in talks with drugmakers over her research.
The Charlotte Lozier Institute and Susan B. Anthony List, which advocate against abortion, have said that the FDA decision to relax restrictions on mifepristone ignored data on complications and put women at risk.
Others point to the decade-long legal fight for over-the-counter Plan B, a form of emergency contraception taken within days of sexual intercourse to prevent a pregnancy. Approval for women 18 and over was granted in 2006 and for use by women of all ages in 2013.
“There was very strong support that you did not need a prescriber,” said Ms. Wood, who resigned from the FDA in 2005 over the delay. “Everybody under the sun agreed except for a small group of people who somehow had an enormous political influence.”
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