A new program is set to be introduced by the provincial government in order to make Mifegymiso, often known as the abortion pill, universally accessible to New Brunswickers.
READ MORE: NB Women’s Council identifies barriers to medical abortion
In a government release Tuesday, the province said the Department of Health would introduce a program that will allow any woman with a valid Medicare card eligible to receive Mifegymiso free of charge.
The pill, which also is known as “Miffy,” involves taking two pills: Mifepristone and Mifoprostol. It was authorized by Health Canada in July 2015 and was made available in January 2017.
Allison Webster with Reproductive Justice New Brunswick said her organization is with the announcement.
“[We’re] very happy that the government is taking another step forward in the fight for true abortion access in New Brunswick,” Webster told Global News.
Mifegymiso was approved for use under several conditions including:
- The requirement of an ultrasound to confirm gestational age
- Not allowing the pill to be prescribed beyond a gestational age of 49 days
- Only having a physician be allowed to provide the combination drug, and
- Prescriptions can only be provided by a physician who has completed a training course and been registered with the manufacturer
Webster said she has concerns over the conditions put out by Health Canada and how they relate to New Brunswick. She said having access to the abortion pill may help, but there are still issues.
“Mifegymiso is not going to work for everybody and there are many different reasons for that, not the least of which are gestational limits which are still very burdensome in New Brunswick,” Webster said. “So it may go a long way towards helping folks in rural areas who find out they have an unwanted pregnancy very early in their pregnancy, but it’s not enough to solve the problem of access to abortion in New Brunswick.”
WATCH: Health Minister Jane Philpott on abortion pill MIfegymiso and health care accessibility.
She added though she’s happy the government removed the legislation requiring two doctors to sign off on an abortion, which was done in 2015, having services only available at three hospitals in Moncton and Bathurst is not enough.
One of the pills disrupts how progesterone works in the body, while the other causes muscle contractions in the uterus and causes the lining to shed, resulting in an aborted pregnancy. The pills can be used to terminate a developing pregnancy up to 49 days from the start of a woman’s last period.
Health Minister Victor Boudreau said the pill is currently going through the Common Drug Review, which reviews new drugs to determine if they should be covered by public drug plans across the country.
Once this process is complete, which Boudreau expects will be later this month, it will then go through the Pan-Canadian Pricing Alliance (PCPA) where all provinces and territories negotiate with the drug’s manufacturer to get the best price. He said this will likely take place in the coming weeks and months.
“We want to make sure that once the drug does get through the PCPA that we’re basically ready to hit the ground running and provide the service to all women who chose to have it,” Boudreau said.
READ MORE: Abortion pill: Canadian prescribers to get training for Mifegymiso this month
The New Brunswick Women’s Council called on the government in October asking the province ensure the drug would be affordable to New Brunswickers. The council’s executive director, Beth Lyons, had told Global News that without support, the drug would cost women $300. She also said doctors need to take a training course before they can give the drug to patients and that Health Canada requires a 14-day availability by doctors after the dose is given.
Boudreau said the plan is to make the pill free upfront.
“We do want to make sure that it’s not the woman that has to pay for the drug upfront and then be reimbursed,” he said.
He added part of the reason for announcing the access Tuesday was to push more doctors to take the training course.
“The drug has been on the market since January and to our knowledge, very few doctors have actually taken the online training that’s required with the manufacturer. So we’re hoping by talking about [it], more physicians will step up.”
In a statement, New Brunswick Medical Society president Dr. Lynn Murphy-Kaulbeck, said they expect the government to make the pill available to all women in the province but especially for women in rural areas, who may not have the transportation or financial means to access the service at the hospitals in Moncton and Bathurst.
Lyons told Global News on Tuesday that there will be details to iron out, but it’s “really encouraging” having the pill as an option for women.
“We want to ensure that people who are looking to access this prescription can get access to ultrasound in a timely way,” Lyons said.
READ MORE: How the abortion pill could change reproductive health
She said some of the details will likely include access for people without a medicare card, such as out-of-province students or newcomers to the province, as well as whether doctors will take the training.