Walgreens has said it will not sell the dangerous abortion pill mifepristone in 20 states that have laws protecting the unborn.
This statement is a response to 20 Republican attorneys general who wrote to Walgreens after the company publicized plans in January to start selling abortion drugs to end pregnancies up to 10 weeks.
The AGs threatened lawsuits if the drug chain violates their pro-life state laws by distributing abortion pills. These AGs additionally contacted CVS, Albertsons, Rite Aid, Costco, Walmart and Kroger with the same demand.
Walgreens spokesperson Fraser Engerman said that the business replied to each of the attorneys general, confirming that the nation’s second-largest pharmacy chain will not distribute mifepristone by mail or in brick-and-mortar locations in their states.
Those states are Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah and West Virginia.
Even though abortions are still legal in some of these states—like Alaska, Iowa and Montana—Walgreens complied with their AG’s request in order to avoid any legal consequences.
However, the company is seeking to dispense mifepristone in several undisclosed states once it receives mandated certification through the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. But Engerman asserted Walgreens “will dispense only in those jurisdictions where it is legal to do so if we are certified.”
Mifepristone, which is usually taken along with the drug misoprostol, is the most common method used to end pregnancies in the U.S. According to the Guttmacher Institute and Pew Research, over half of America’s abortions occur through this medication, which kills almost 500,000 unborn babies annually.
Between 2000 and 2018, mifepristone is believed to have caused at least 24 women’s deaths and 4,000 health complications. Because the FDA ended its requirement for non-fatal mifepristone complications to be reported under the Obama administration, these numbers are likely to be significantly higher.
Walgreen’s recent announcement is one step forward in upholding the pro-life movement following the overturn of Roe v. Wade last year. Since the states have been handed the freedom to discern their abortion laws, many leaders have stepped up to advocate for the unborn, like Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach.“In my letter to Walgreens, we made clear that Kansas will not hesitate to enforce the laws against mailing and dispensing abortion pills, including bringing a RICO [Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations] action to enforce the federal law prohibiting the mailing of abortion pills,” Kobach said in a statement.
“Evidently, Walgreens understood that my office was serious about this. I’m grateful that Walgreens responded quickly and reasonably and intends to comply with the relevant laws.”
