WASHINGTON, DC –– Tomorrow, September 28, marks the twenty-fourth anniversary of the Food and Drug Administration's approval of medication abortion in the United States. For nearly a quarter of a century, access to safe, effective medication abortion care has been essential to ensuring people’s freedom to make decisions about their bodies based on what’s best for their circumstances. Mifepristone is a safe, effective FDA-approved medication used for early abortion and is now used in more than half of all abortions. Mifepristone is also recommended by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) for use in miscarriage management. If left untreated, miscarriage can put women at risk for severe infection, infertility, or even death.

Medication abortion is overwhelmingly popular with Americans, accounting for over half of all abortions in the United States. New data from Navigator Research finds that 62% of Americans support allowing women to legally access medication abortion to end an early pregnancy at home. Still, anti-abortion extremists are committed to restricting access to all types of reproductive health care, including medication abortion.

From baseless legal challenges and efforts to manipulate an obscure law from the 1800s to restrict access to medication abortion, extremists across the country are finding new and vicious ways to roll back our rights even further. Some have gone so far as to exploit the tragic deaths of Amber Thurman and Candi Miller, who lost their lives as a result of Georgia’s harsh abortion ban, which left both women without timely access to medical care.

Ahead of the twenty fourth anniversary of the FDA’s approval of medication abortion, health care providers from Georgia released statements responding to the latest attacks from anti-abortion extremists.  

“Misoprostol and mifepristone are safe and effective, and a reliable option for many patients – these medications are also standard of care for treating miscarriages,” said Dr. Juhi Varshney, an emergency medicine physician in Atlanta. “What is unsafe is delaying or denying care to patients in need. Amber and Candi should be alive today. The extremists spreading misinformation about their tragic deaths and the safety of medication abortion are putting more lives at risk.”

“After the deaths of Amber and Candi, my anxiety is even worse. I worry for every single patient that I refer to the hospital,” said Suki O, an ultrasound technician in the Atlanta area who testified before the House Democratic Steering and Policy Committee earlier this week about the dangers of abortion bans. 

“Medication abortion is safe – extremist politicians intervening in medical treatment is not,” said Veronica Ingham, Senior Campaigns Director for Free & Just. “The extremists seeking to capitalize on the horrific deaths of Amber Thurman and Candi Miller and spreading dangerous misinformation about medication abortion are being reckless, cruel, and dishonest. As we mark the twenty-fourth anniversary of the FDA’s approval of medication abortion, we must continue to amplify the stories of real people affected by these attacks and be clear about what’s at stake right now for abortion access and reproductive freedom.”

If you are interested in speaking with any of the storytellers quoted above, please contact kelly@freeandjust.us. 

###

Free & Just is fighting to stop attacks on reproductive freedom and rights. We’re working with people across the country to share real stories to show the devastating consequences of attacks on our reproductive freedom. We all deserve the right to control our bodies and lives. That’s why we’re sharing our stories, raising our voices, and fighting for our future.