Oregon Secures Three Year Supply Of Abortion Drug

Portland, Ore. — In the face of a delay by the U.S. Supreme Court to issue a decision on a lower-court ruling that would restrict access to medication abortion, Oregon Governor Tina Kotek has announced that the state has partnered with Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU) to ensure a three-year supply of Mifepristone, a safe and effective medication approved by the FDA over 20 years ago for use in miscarriage management and to end a pregnancy.

“By challenging the FDA’s authority over Mifepristone, the lower court decisions set an alarming precedent of putting politics above established science, medical evidence, and a patient’s health, life, and well-being—with potential implications beyond this one medication,” said Governor Kotek. “This meritless lawsuit is part of a larger campaign to ban abortion in every state, including those with legal protections for abortion access. We cannot afford to stand by and watch our fundamental right to reproductive health care be stripped away.”

The Governor directed the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) to work with the Department of Justice (DOJ) to explore all available avenues to safeguard access to reproductive health care in Oregon in response to the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine v. U.S. Food and Drug Administration lawsuit in Texas, which is part of a larger effort to ban abortion nationwide.

The state’s licensing boards have also been directed to issue guidance to Oregon providers clarifying that Oregon supports providers in continuing to provide reproductive health care, consistent with the established standards of care, including prescribing, dispensing and using mifepristone regardless of the upcoming Supreme Court decision in the Texas lawsuit.

As states continue to pass laws targeting abortion patients, providers, and people assisting patients, Governor Kotek has pledged to refuse non-fugitive extradition of individuals for criminal prosecution for receiving legal reproductive healthcare services in Oregon, supporting patients in accessing reproductive healthcare services in Oregon, or providing legal reproductive healthcare services in Oregon.

“To our providers, to the patients who live in Oregon or have been forced to come to our state for care, and to those who are helping people access the care they need, know that I have your back,” Governor Kotek said. “Here in Oregon, I will make sure that patients are able to access the medication they need and providers are able to provide that medication without unnecessary, politically-motivated interference and intimidation.”