GOP attorneys general warn CVS, Walgreens against mailing abortion pills in their states

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Mifepristone (Mifeprex) and misoprostol, two drugs used in medical abortion, are seen at a female reproductive clinic that provides legal medical abortion services in Santa Teresa, New Mexico, on June 17, 2022.

Robyn Beck | AFP | Getty Images

Republican attorneys general in 20 states warned CVS and Walgreens this week against shipping abortion pills into their jurisdictions, suggesting they will launch legal action.

“We emphasize that it is our responsibility as attorneys general to uphold the law and protect the health, safety and well-being of women and unborn children in our states,” the attorneys general said. warned in letters on Wednesday to two of the largest drugstore chains in the country.

“Part of that responsibility includes ensuring that businesses like yours are fully informed of the law so that our citizens are not harmed,” the attorney general warned.

The Food and Drug Administration approved mifepristone more than 20 years ago as a safe and effective way to terminate an early pregnancy. The FDA says scientific and real-world evidence shows the pill is safer than surgical abortion and childbirth.

Pharmacies said last month that they are are applying for FDA certification to dispense prescription pills in countries where it is legal.

The decision by CVS and Walgreens comes after the FDA recently changed its rules to allow retail pharmacies to dispense the pills for the first time if the prescription was issued by a certified health care provider.

CNBC has reached out to the companies for comment on the letters.

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The pill, mifepristone, became a focal point in the fight against abortion after the Supreme Court’s decision last June to overturn Roe v. Wade, which for 50 years protected access to the procedure as a constitutional right.

A dozen states have essentially banned abortion since the Supreme Court ruling. Other countries have restrictions on mifepristone that conflict with FDA regulations on the drug.

The Biden administration issued a legal opinion last month arguing that the Postal Service can mail the pills to states where they are banned as long as the sender does not intend to violate the law.

The Justice Department argued that even in states with strict abortion restrictions, there are exceptions where mifepristone would be legal. The Justice Department’s opinion was in response to a USPS request asking how to handle an 1873 law called the Comstock Act that prohibits sending anything used to terminate a pregnancy through the mail.

But the attorneys general dismissed the Justice Department’s opinion as “outlandish” and said they expected the courts to uphold their view that mifepristone could not be mailed in their states.

There are several pending legal issues regarding the FDA’s approval of mifepristone. GenBioPro, one of the pill makers, has sued to overturn West Virginia’s abortion banwhich argues that FDA approval of drugs preempts state law.

Anti-abortion doctors sued the FDA in federal court in Texas withdraw mifepristone from the US market completely. The FDA called the lawsuit “extraordinary and unprecedented” and warned that a decision in favor of the doctors would harm its approval authority.

The letters to CVS and Walgreens were signed by the attorneys general of Missouri, Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah and West Virginia.

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