Democrats urge FDA to lift dispensing restriction on abortion drug mifepristone

Democratic Reps. including Carolyn Maloney, N.Y., and Ayanna Pressley, Mass., are pressuring the government to remove restrictions that require the dispensing of abortion medication in-person at certain medical facilities.

The Democratic congresswomen of the House Oversight Committee argue that people seeking the drug during the pandemic have been forced to put themselves in "harm’s way" in order to obtain it, even though the FDA has relaxed dispensing requirements for several other drugs. Beyond having to go into a doctor’s office, the pair noted that there are several other economic inequities exploited by the process that would be addressed by allowing mifepristone to be obtained more easily. "Under these restrictions, someone seeking an abortion … would also need to potentially take off work, seek childcare, and travel to attend their appointment," the article reads. "These restrictions take economic privilege to overcome and further entrench long standing health inequities."