The Rise of Anti-Birth Control RhetoricÂ
June 09, 2026
Federal Courts to Decide Issues of Mifepristone Access
June 22, 2026
Medication abortion, or the ability to end a pregnancy in its early stages by taking medication, is under attack.
Several states with abortion bans are challenging women’s access to mifepristone, a medication used in a majority of abortions in the United States. Since the overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022, many women have turned to mifepristone, with the advice and help of their obstetricians, in order to end their pregnancies. As about half the states in the U.S. continue to make abortion unobtainable, mifepristone has become the only realistic way for many women to obtain an abortion.
One case that physicians and women’s rights advocates are watching closely is Louisiana v. FDA, which is currently before a federal district court. In this case, Louisiana is seeking to overturn rules that allow women to obtain mifepristone through telehealth appointments or mail-order pharmacies. In other words, Louisiana wants to require women to visit physicians in person, which would add a layer of expense and difficulty to obtaining a mifepristone prescription.
Mifepristone was approved by the FDA in 2000 and is currently used in nearly 100 countries. According to the Center for Reproductive Rights, mifepristone is used for more than 60% of abortions in this country, and it also is used for at least half of all abortions in the majority of high income nations.
The ERA would be another legal tool to protect women’s access to safe, affordable healthcare, including the right to abortion by medication. Women are uniquely affected by access to reproductive healthcare and medication. In order for women to have true equality, they must have the ability to make decisions about their own bodies and futures. If recognized as the 28th Amendment to the Constitution, the ERA would ensure that laws affecting reproductive rights are looked at through a lens of equality.
Facts About Abortion Medication:
- Mifepristone blocks progesterone, a hormone needed to support an early pregnancy.
- 48 hours after taking mifepristone, a woman must take misoprostol.
- Taking these medications will cause contractions and expel pregnancy tissue.
- Women will experience bleeding and cramps which can feel like a crampy period or even an early miscarriage.
- Side effects of the medication include chills, nausea and fever.
- Symptoms will likely last up to 24 hours.
- It is common to feel tired one to two days after taking the medication, but most women are able to attend to life as normal.
- Telehealth appointments typically cost around $250.
- Abortion medications cost around $85-$100. This is a much cheaper alternative to an abortion procedure.
- More than 7.5 million women have used mifepristone since its approval by the FDA in 2000.
