THE FUSS is over a pill-an abortion pill that has been used safely for nearly a quarter-century, but has now become a political, medical, legal and regulatory hot potato. It's an intense legal battle with profound ramifications. Not only is it leading to more vociferous protests and campaigns in a society deeply divided on the matter, but it is undermining the very basis of regulation by an independent federal agency in the US.
The case that is roiling the US is a suit by a group of doctors who are seeking to curtail the availability of the nation's most used abortion drug, mifepristone. Approved in 2000 by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), its usage has increased steadily over the decades after it has proven to be safe and effective. According to the Guttmacher Institute, a non-governmental organisation that promotes reproductive rights worldwide, there were approximately 642,700 medication abortions in the US last year, accounting for 63 per cent of all abortions in the formal healthcare system. The numbers would be higher since the institute did not take into account the usage outside the formal system. In combination with misoprostol, the two-drug regimen is the most widely prescribed abortion therapy. As such, millions of women are anxious about the outcome of the doctors' lawsuit, as is FDA, since a hard right judiciary has passed orders that undercut its role in approving drugs and setting the rules for their usage.
The anti-abortion doctors and organisations in this suit claim participating in the care of women who have resorted to the use of the abortion pill "to end the life of the embryo or foetus would cause them emotional and moral harm". And how would this occur? They say there would be moral harm because patients who take abortion pills might seek treatment afterwards at emergency departments in hospitals where the doctors work.
Denne historien er fra April 16, 2024-utgaven av Down To Earth.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra April 16, 2024-utgaven av Down To Earth.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
In leading role again
MOVIES AND WEB SERIES ARE ONCE AGAIN BEING SET IN RUSTIC BACKGROUNDS, INDICATING A RECONNECT BETWEEN CINEMA AND THE COUNTRYSIDE
One Nation One Subscription comes at a huge cost
As top US universities scrap big deals with top scientific publishers, India’s ONOS scheme seems flawed and outdated
Return of Rambhog
Bid to revive and sell the aromatic indigenous paddy variety has led to substantial profits for farmers in Uttar Pradesh's Terai region
Scarred by mining
Natural springs of Kashmir drying up due to illegal riverbed mining
Human-to-human spread a mutation away
CANADA IN mid-November confirmed its first human case of avian influenza, with a teenager in the British Columbia being hospitalised after contracting the H5N1 virus that causes the disease. The patient developed a severe form of the disease, also called bird flu, and had respiratory issues. There was no known cause of transmission.
True rehabilitation
Residents of Madhya Pradesh's Kakdi village take relocation as an opportunity to undertake afforestation, develop sustainable practices
INESCAPABLE THREAT
Chemical pollution is the most underrated and underreported risk of the 21st century that threatens all species and regions
THAT NIGHT, 40 YEARS AGO
Bhopal gas disaster is a tragedy that people continue to face
A JOKE, INDEED
A CONFERENCE OF IRRESPONSIBLE PARTIES THAT CREATED AN OPTICAL ILLUSION TO THE REALITY OF A NEW CLIMATE
THINGS FALL APART
THE WORLD HAS MADE PROGRESS IN MITIGATING EMISSIONS AND ADAPTING TO CLIMATE IMPACTS. BUT THE PROGRESS REMAINS GROSSLY INADEQUATE
