Canadas decision to remove restrictions on the abortion pill did not impact its safety, a new study has found.

Researchers at the University of British Columbia say the study shows the drug remains a safe, effective option and signals to other countries that restrictions on the medication are unnecessary and burdensome.

Having access to medication that can be taken at home without a trip to the doctor or an abortion clinic, which are often harder to find in rural areas, became more crucial in a pandemic, said Dr. Sheila Dunn, a scientist and family physician at Womens College Hospital who co-authored the study published this month in the New England Journal of Medicine.

The potential for this drug is you dont need an operating room, or surgical training to be able to deliver that care. You can deliver it from your office ... and your office could be in a small town, she said.

It has the potential to widen the number of providers. The change in the regulations really made a difference in whether or not providers would pick it up, she said.

Previously, the restrictions on the medication were onerous, she said.

Prior to November 2017, physicians were required to observe their patients taking the medication and in order to prescribe it, a doctor would need to be specially trained and registered with the manufacturer.

The abortion pill was approved in Canada in July 2015, while in 57 other countries like France and Britain, it had been available for decades. The U.S. approved the drug in 2000.

The drug provides an alternative to surgical abortions, and can be used up until 63 days into the pregnancy.

It works in two parts: first a patient takes mifepristone, which blocks the hormone progesterone, which sustains a pregnancy. It stimulates the uterus to expel the pregnancy tissue, said Dunn. Then a second pill containing the hormone prostaglandin is taken one to two days later.

The process is similar to what would happen during a miscarriage, said Dunn.

The research showed that prescribing the drug without restrictions showed no increase in abortion-related health complications.

Researchers analyzed 315,000 abortions in Ontario between 2012 and 2020 and found no increase in health issues following the removal of the abortion pill restrictions.

Our study is a signal to other countries that restrictions are not necessary to ensure patient safety, Wendy Norman, the studys senior author and professor in UBCs department of family practice, said in a press release about the research.

The previous restrictions had no scientific justification and made it more difficult for people to access the care they needed, she said.

The uptake of the abortion pill was rapid following policy changes, the study says. When the medication became available without restrictions, within two years, 31.4 per cent of abortions in the country were provided using the drug.

The abortion rate also declined slightly after restrictions were removed, from 11.9 abortions per 1,000 female residents aged 15-49, to 11.3 indicating an increase in access does not mean an increase in abortions, said Dunn.

The abortion pill allows the experience of an abortion to be more private, and allows the patient to avoid the harassment many face around abortion clinics. Ontario launched protest-free buffer zones of 50 metres outside clinics and 150 metres outside abortion providers homes in 2017 for this reason.

Canada is the first country in the world to remove the restrictions, and its hoped other nations will follow suit, said Dunn.

It provides very good evidence that theres no rational reason for [restrictions] in terms of safety. Weve shown that really doesnt exist, she said.

Last week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration removed a long-standing requirement that women had to pick up the medication in person.

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Remove restrictions on abortion pill didn't impact safety: Study | The Star - Toronto Star

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