California strikes deal to stock up on abortion pills

Mifepristone was approved by the FDA more than 20 years ago to induce first-trimester abortions in combination with a second drug, misoprostol.

Victor R. Caivano/AP

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Victor R. Caivano/AP

Mifepristone was approved by the FDA more than 20 years ago to induce first-trimester abortions in combination with a second drug, misoprostol.

Victor R. Caivano/AP

California is stocking up on the medication misoprostol, used to induce abortions worldwide, as another major abortion pill appears poised to potentially become unavailable.

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office says it’s made plans to secure an emergency stockpile of up to 2 million misoprostol pills. Officials say the state currently has more than 250,000 of those already on hand, which were purchased for about $100,000.

“While California still believes Mifepristone is central to the preferred regimen for medication abortion, the State negotiated and purchased an emergency stockpile of Misoprostol in anticipation of Friday’s ruling by far-right federal judge Matthew Kacsmaryk to ensure that California remains a safe haven for safe, affordable, and accessible reproductive care,” Newsom’s office said in a statement provided to NPR.

This afternoon, Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healy said her state has stockpiled some 15,000 mifepristone pills or more than a year’s worth of doses. Last week, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee announced his state had prepared a stockpile of about three years’ worth of mifepristone.

In the United States, most medication abortions involve two drugs: mifepristone followed by misoprostol, a protocol approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2000. A coalition of anti-abortion-rights groups are suing the FDA, seeking to force mifepristone to be pulled from the market.

On Friday, a Trump-appointed federal judge in Texas with a long history of ties with conservative activists ruled that the FDA should halt its approval, an order that’s scheduled to go into effect in about a week.

More than half of abortions in the U.S. are now medication abortions, and the vast majority of those involve the two-drug protocol, which is considered the gold standard here. But the second medication in that regimen, misoprostol, also can be used alone to induce abortion.

Researchers say the single-drug approach is slightly less effective and can be more painful for patients, but misoprostol alone is endorsed by the World Health Organization as an effective option.

Newsom’s office says the pills were secured through the state’s CalRx prescription drug program, and California is providing information about its purchase agreement to other states that may be interested in taking similar action.

Pharmacies facing shortages will be directed to a state website where they can find information about how to request pills from the misoprostol supply.