{"id":286160,"date":"2023-03-02T10:37:27","date_gmt":"2023-03-02T16:37:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.liveaction.org\/news\/?p=286160"},"modified":"2023-03-19T23:53:04","modified_gmt":"2023-03-20T04:53:04","slug":"bad-actors-failure-prone-abortion-drug","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/bad-actors-failure-prone-abortion-drug\/","title":{"rendered":"BAD ACTORS: Abortion industry set to promote failure-prone abortion drug if abortion pill goes away"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Editor’s Note: This article is the third in a series. Read other installments at the following links… Bad Actors #1<\/a>, Bad Actors #2<\/a>,\u00a0Bad Actors #4<\/a>, <\/i>Bad Actors #5<\/a>, <\/i>Bad Actors #6<\/a>, Bad Actors #7<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

The profitable abortion industry is threatening to promote the unapproved one-drug abortion regimen (referred to as ‘Misoprostol only’) if\u00a0litigation<\/a> seeking to undo the FDA’s approval of the current two-drug abortion pill regimen proves successful.<\/p>\n

Misoprostol-only abortions have a much higher failure rate than the approved two-drug (mifepristone\/misoprostol) regimen, meaning women taking ‘misoprostol only’ are at greater risk of an incomplete abortion. In such cases, women may be advised to take additional doses of misoprostol or to have a surgical procedure to complete the abortion.<\/p>\n

In 2000, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the abortion pill mifepristone (Mifeprex) for use in an abortion regimen with a second drug \u2014\u00a0misoprostol. Due to the potential for serious adverse events when using mifepristone, that drug has been under a safety system (REMS) which monitors use and regulates those certified to prescribe and dispense the drug. Because\u00a0the FDA has kept the drug under stricter oversight due to the REMS, abortion industry leaders are flipping the script.<\/p>\n

Misoprostol (Cytotec) was FDA-approved<\/a> to lower the risk of stomach ulcers caused by nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs<\/a>) like ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin)<\/a> in certain people, according to GoodRx<\/a>. Misoprostol\u00a0is not subject to the REMS safety system, which is why bad actors in the abortion industry could be pivoting toward the unapproved one-drug versus the approved two-drug regimen. Technically, using misoprostol in the abortion pill regimen is considered off-label<\/a>\u00a0use.<\/p>\n

Media has\u00a0referred<\/a> to\u00a0mifepristone as “the sidekick, and misoprostol the superhero,” meaning that it is believed misoprostol (the second drug) contributes more to the “success” of the abortion pill regimen than mifepristone. Beverly Winikoff<\/a>, president of\u00a0Gynuity Health Projects (GHP)<\/a>, which conducted a TelAbortion clinical trial and reportedly “helped develop the World Health Organization\u2019s guidelines for medication abortion,” agreed, saying, “If you had to choose only one, you would choose the miso \u2014 but it wouldn\u2019t be as effective as having the two.”<\/p>\n

\"Walgreens<\/a><\/p>\n

Abortion industry pivots to promoting the unapproved one-drug regimen<\/strong><\/p>\n

Joan Fleischman’s MYA Network tells its clients online<\/a> that in addition to the FDA-approved abortion pill regimen, “Another option is to use misoprostol only. This method is a little less effective (it works about 85% \u2013 90% of the time) and may have more side effects, but the advantage is that the pills are very inexpensive and can be picked up at any local pharmacy.”<\/p>\n

Fleischman recently<\/a> received backlash for distributing images of purported early embryos to the Guardian, which it published, and which look nothing like actual early embryos.<\/p>\n

\"Image:

MYA Network advocates Miso Only abortion pill<\/p><\/div>\n

The MYA Network<\/a> claims\u00a0to be<\/a> “a network of clinicians, activists and patients\u00a0who want to normalize abortion care, medically and culturally.” So it was even more shocking to discover that their own website acknowledges the high incidences of failed abortion with the one-drug misoprostol-only regimen.<\/p>\n

MYA’s FAQ section<\/a> reads, “A\u00a0mifepristone\/misoprostol\u00a0abortion pill fails about 1-2% of the time. A misoprostol-only abortion fails about 10-15% of the time” \u2014 a vast difference, increasing clients’ failure rates anywhere from 650-1400% with ‘misoprostol-only’.\u00a0Media reports confirm that the abortion industry is already utilizing the unapproved one-drug abortion regimen, outside the approved FDA two-drug regimen<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Image:

MYA Network advocates unapproved one-drug Miso Only abortion pill regimen with high failure rate<\/p><\/div>\n

“At this point, there are still a lot of unknowns in terms of how this\u00a0<\/strong>is going to play out,” Dr. Jamila Perritt, president and CEO of Physicians for Reproductive Health told<\/a> Houston Public Media. “What we do know is that misoprostol has been used on its own for decades around the world and is effective at ending an early pregnancy.”<\/p>\n

But the media outlet<\/a> also noted that abortionist Ushma Upadhyay admitted that a ‘misoprostol-only’ protocol could produce a higher risk of side effects like nausea and cramping.\u00a0“It’s so important that patients understand how long they’ll be bleeding after they take the miso alone,” Upadhyay said. “And it is longer.”<\/p>\n

Slate Magazine recently\u00a0wrote<\/a>,\u00a0“The medical director of Just the Pill, a nonprofit\u00a0online clinic<\/a>\u00a0that mails abortion medication to patients in four U.S. states, said the organization is prepared to switch to a misoprostol-only protocol ‘if the Texas judge rules in the way that it\u2019s expected.'”<\/p>\n

She was referring to a\u00a0federal lawsuit<\/a>\u00a0filed by the Alliance Defending Freedom on behalf of the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the American College of Pediatricians, the Christian Medical & Dental Associations, and doctors Shaun Jester, Regina Frost-Clark, Tyler Johnson, and George Delgado. The Plaintiffs are asking the court to hold the FDA accountable for its recklessness in approving the abortion pill two decades ago.<\/p>\n

\"Image:

Misoprostol packaging by GenBioPro<\/p><\/div>\n

“A representative from Hey Jane, another site that does virtual consultations and mails abortion pills, said many of the group\u2019s practitioners have already provided misoprostol-only abortions<\/strong>, and they are ready to fully pivot if mifepristone is banned. Planned Parenthood\u00a0confirmed to Jezebel<\/a>\u00a0that its facilities are ready to offer misoprostol-only abortions, too,” Slate Magazine noted<\/a>\u00a0(emphasis added).<\/p>\n

Eight\u00a0abortion providers have confirmed<\/a> to Jezebel that if a Texas judge rules in favor<\/a> of the Plaintiffs, “they are prepared to prescribe misoprostol-only abortions as a workaround.”<\/p>\n

“Planned Parenthood,\u00a0Abortion on Demand,\u00a0Aid Access,\u00a0Carafem,\u00a0Choix,\u00a0Forward Midwifery,\u00a0Hey Jane,\u00a0and\u00a0Just the Pill\u00a0told me they\u2019re ready with the back-up plan and that the single-drug regimen is safe and effective,”\u00a0Susan Rinkunas\u00a0of Jezebel wrote<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Planned Parenthood even seemed to endorse<\/a> the ‘misoprostol-only’ protocol in a recent press release. In a Twitter thread<\/a>, the abortion corporation claimed<\/a> that if the previously mentioned federal lawsuit prevailed, “… medication abortion with only one drug – misoprostol – will still be accessible in states where abortion is not banned. And misoprostol has safely been used by millions of people for decades…”<\/p>\n

\"Image:

Planned Parenthood Tweets Misoprostol only for abortion if ADF lawsuit prevails (Image: Twitter)<\/p><\/div>\n

The industry seems poised to go off the approved FDA protocol regardless of the risk to women.<\/p>\n

According to one OBGYN<\/a>, a ‘misoprostol-only’ abortion has a higher failure rate than the approved FDA regimen, can lead to a born-alive infant, and has the potential to produce birth defects. In addition, Live Action News has documented<\/a> at least one death related to ‘misoprostol-only’ abortion.<\/p>\n

Leah Coplon, director of clinical operations for the online abortion pill dispensary Abortion on Demand, told<\/a> Houston Public Media they are also preparing to switch to the unapproved method. “Obviously we hope that we can continue to use mifepristone and misoprostol, but we’re ready if necessary,” she stated.<\/p>\n

“Carafem, an organization that provides medication abortion through telehealth as well as at clinics in Chicago, Atlanta and outside Washington, D.C., began offering the single-drug protocol in 2020 amidst growing threats to abortion access in general and mifepristone in particular,”\u00a0Houston Public Media reported.<\/p>\n

“It made sense to us to better understand how to use it and make it available,” Carafem’s Chief Operating Officer Melissa Grant\u00a0told<\/a> Houston Public Media.<\/p>\n

Other abortion promoters are also openly advocating<\/a>\u00a0that women seek misoprostol from veterinary<\/em> sources, and one has published<\/a> a recipe to make the drug online\u00a0\u2014 it should go without saying that both of these options put women at risk.<\/p>\n

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First time ever, I believe, a witness has explained step-by-step how to self-manage an abortion with pills. <\/p>\n

"Everyone loves someone who has abortions," says @RBraceySherman<\/a> after explaining how to self-manage your abortion. pic.twitter.com\/a7qjzCELtj<\/a><\/p>\n

— Alanna Vagianos (@AlannaVagianos) July 19, 2022<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n