Medication abortion remains available through telehealth in New York, even after a federal appeals court ruling restricted access to mifepristone, one of the two drugs commonly used in abortion care.
The ruling by a panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans bars mifepristone from being prescribed and distributed by mail nationwide. But New York providers say the decision will not immediately stop patients from getting abortion medication remotely because they can switch to a misoprostol-only regimen.
Planned Parenthood of Greater New York said it will continue mailing abortion medication through its Planned Parenthood Direct app, but will use misoprostol-only kits instead of the standard two-drug regimen that starts with mifepristone. The organization described misoprostol as a safe and effective option used worldwide to end early pregnancies.
New York City Health and Hospitals has also offered medication abortion by mail after telehealth consultations since late 2023. Its website says the system will adapt its protocols and medications as needed to comply with the law while continuing to provide care based on research and science.
The court ruling stems from a lawsuit brought by Louisiana, which argued that remote prescriptions undermined the state’s abortion ban. The decision is expected to be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court.
The issue is significant because medication abortions now make up a large share of abortion care nationwide. According to the Guttmacher Institute, they accounted for about 65% of clinician-provided abortions in the United States in 2023.
For New Yorkers, the immediate takeaway is straightforward: telehealth abortion care is still available, but the medication used may change depending on how providers respond to the ruling.
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