Walgreens, CVS say they will sell abortion pills after FDA rule change

(CBS NEWS) — Walgreens and CVS, the two largest drugstore chains in the U.S., told CBS MoneyWatch they intend to sell the abortion drug mifepristone after the Food and Drug Administration reversed a rule that had prevented retail pharmacies from dispensing the medication.

The FDA on Tuesday announced it would allow pharmacies to dispense mifepristone to patients with a prescription for the drug, which is one of the two medications needed to induce a so-called “medication abortion.” The rule change also comes as the Justice Department recently gave the green light to the U.S. Postal Service to continue delivering abortion medication by mail, including, notably, in states that have passed restrictions on abortion services since the Supreme Court last year stuck down the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision.

Previously, mifepristone could only be prescribed by some mail-order pharmacies and certified physicians, which experts said had created barriers to access. The FDA on Tuesday also officially removed a requirement that the drug be dispensed in person.

The second drug used in so-called medication abortions, misoprostol, is also used to treat stomach ulcers and thus is more easily accessible from pharmacies than mifepristone.

The two drugs are needed in combination to induce medication abortion, which is considered safe and effective for up to 10 weeks of pregnancy and now accounts for more than half of abortions in the U.S., according to the Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive rights organization.

The changes were hailed by supporters of abortion access, which has been restricted or banned in more than a dozen states after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.

“We are moving what had been a very niche product in a closed-loop system into the mainstream,” said Kirsten Moore, director of the EMAA Project, which advocates for access to medication abortion. “I am thrilled beyond words that major chains are saying we will treat this like other FDA approved medications.”

The change should increase access to the pills, Dr. Kristyn Brandi, an abortion provider in New Jersey, told CBS News in reference to the new FDA rule. Doctors should be able “to prescribe the medication, just like you can get other medications prescribed,” she said.