Reversal of Roe triggers spike in request for abortion pills

by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent

(Worthy News) – The US Supreme Court’s decision to reverse its 1973 Roe v Wade ruling and withdraw the right to abortion triggered a surge in requests for abortion pills from residents in states where abortion was immediately banned, the New York Times (NYT) reports. The SCOTUS decision given in Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization was issued on Friday, June 24.

One organization that arranges medical abortions told NYT it had received 100 requests for the pills within a few hours of the Supreme Court’s decision being published on Friday. According to the organization, this was four times the number of daily requests it normally received.

The abortion pills Mifepristone and misoprostol are taken to end early pregnancies without surgical intervention. Authorized by the US Food and Drug Administration, the pills have been used in more than half of recent abortions in America – and the demand for them is mounting, NYT said.

Within four days of the reversal of Roe, 10 conservative US states had enacted complete bans on abortion, the People reported. Idaho, Mississippi, North Dakota, Tennessee, and Wyoming are expected to do so within a month.

Missouri was the first to enact its anti-abortion law, a piece of legislation that carries a prison sentence of up to 15 years for performing or inducing an abortion. Nine other states, including Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, and Utah have followed suit.

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