As of Tuesday, two common abortion pills are classified as “controlled substances” in Louisiana. This is the first law that medical experts warn will put women’s lives at risk by restricting drugs used to treat conditions such as postpartum hemorrhage. conditions.
Louisiana, which already bans abortion, passed a law reclassifying mifepristone and misoprostol as Schedule IV drugs. This designation is typically limited to drugs that pose a risk of abuse or dependence. Obtaining the drug without a valid prescription can result in up to five years in prison, but the law exempts pregnant women who obtain the drug for their own use.
These drugs are typically used for medication abortions in the United States, but are also regularly used in a variety of other situations, including managing miscarriages, treating ulcers, and softening the cervix during childbirth and other procedures. Masu.
Typically, at the Louisiana hospital where obstetrician-gynecologist Nicole Freehill, M.D., works, misoprostol is kept in so-called bleeding carts, where it can be easily transported to the room where a patient will give birth; It carries drugs used to treat bleeding, including stalling. Freehill said it takes about 15 seconds to remove the misoprostol from the cart.
Schedule IV drugs now have security requirements that require hospitals to keep misoprostol outside of patients’ rooms. Freehill said when the hospital conducted a drill to find out how long it would take for nurses to get misoprostol under the new rules, it took nurses two minutes.
“A lot of people might think, ‘Oh, two minutes is really fast.’ And yes, in the long scheme of things, it’s fast. But when you have someone who is actively bleeding, two minutes is really fast.” Hundreds of cc of blood can be lost per minute,” Freehill said. “So those few seconds matter. I’m really worried about what’s going to happen to the patient who’s bleeding.”
Compared to other wealthy countries, the United States already has much higher maternal mortality rates, especially among Black Americans.
Before the law was passed, more than 200 doctors wrote a letter to the state legislators who enacted the law asking them to reconsider. “Controlled substances often require more complex reconciliation by pharmacists, patients, and healthcare professionals, require more documentation, and increase patient wait times,” the researchers wrote. “Overall, this creates fear and confusion among patients, physicians, and pharmacists, delays treatment, and worsens outcomes.”
In the two years since the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade, more than a dozen states, including Louisiana, have banned nearly all abortions. However, the number of abortions performed in US clinics has increased, as has the number of self-induced abortions using pills. (Self-administered abortions are usually safe and effective in the first trimester.) In response, anti-abortion activists are demanding access to the abortion pill, which is used in two-thirds of all abortions in the United States. I’m trying to narrow it down.
However, Freehill said there is no medical reason to reclassify mifepristone and misoprostol as Schedule IV drugs.
“I may be using this drug five days a week, but it’s definitely not for abortion treatment,” Freehill said. “I don’t see how this is going to help patient safety.”
