National Organization for Women

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FL NOW with FRF Celebrates 26 Years of Mifepristone Approval by the FDA

For Immediate Release: October 19, 2026.    President Julie Kent, Florida NOW   president@flnow.org

FL NOW, with the coalition Floridians for Reproductive Freedom (FRF), wants to highlight the success of mifepristone (mife) and misoprostol (miso) for safe abortions. The combined regimen of mife and miso is the most common form of abortion, medication abortion (aka abortion pills or medical abortion). In 2000, the FDA approved mife for use in the US for abortions up to 10 weeks. Worldwide it has been in use since 1988.

Exciting facts about medication abortion (mife and miso regimen) are:

  • 63% of all US clinicians use the regimen
  • The National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s comprehensive review of medication abortion found an abortion safety rate of 99%
  • More than 100 peer-reviewed clinical studies have found that mife has a low complication rate and is effective for use in abortion care
  • Evidence also affirms that abortion medication is just as effective when patients get pills by mail or at a pharmacy after a telehealth appointment

“Abortion up to viability is an element of reproductive care for women. 26 years of mifepristone availability has improved women’s ability to plan their lives and families,” said Julie Kent, President of FL NOW. “The current efforts to have the FDA retract its approval of mifepristone are dishonest, especially with a proven track record of safety. FL NOW will continue to support the medication abortion regimen of mifepristone and misoprostol as a requirement of women’s reproductive health”

PRH, Physicians for Reproductive Health Fact Sheet states “Medication abortion is highly politicized and restricted, despite its overwhelmingly positive track record. At the state and federal level, anti-abortion extremists use misinformation and junk science to push unpopular policies that stigmatize medication abortion. For example, as of September 2026, twenty-eight states restrict access to medication abortion. Additionally, anti-abortion extremists are pressuring the FDA and Congress to rescind mifepristone’s approval, particularly mifepristone’s availability via mail and in pharmacies.”

PRH and FL NOW call for action: “Lawmakers and advocates must work to ensure everyone can access health care, including medication abortion—free from stigma, barriers, and political interference. To do so, we must reclaim the narrative by highlighting the science and lived experiences that reaffirm medication abortion’s safety and effectiveness. We must protect and expand access to abortion via telehealth. Telehealth is a vital lifeline for people who need and want abortions because telehealth is private, accessible, affordable, and safe. Finally, we must condemn policies that criminalize abortion seekers, providers, and pills. No one should fear surveillance, jail, or arrest for making decisions about their reproductive future.”

FL NOW is working to get the 6-week abortion ban repealed and fighting potential action to discontinue or limit medication abortion, especially mifepristone,” said Debbie Deland, VP of FL NOW. “Women must have this reproductive healthcare option. FL NOW’s principles include working for bodily autonomy and comprehensive reproductive healthcare. We will never abandon a woman’s right to control her own body. The anti-abortion movement is mostly driven by men who think they should control women’s bodies. They are wrong to deny women freedom.”

We applaud the success of mifepristone and, through our work, expect to see it fully legal across the country for years to come.

Media Contact: Debbie Deland, 407 234-6408, dcdeland@att.net

For more information: https://www.prh.org/medication-abortion-brief