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We’re excited to bring you U.S. Repro Matters, your go-to source for the latest updates on reproductive health and rights in the United States. This week, independent pharmacies begin dispensing abortion pills, New Jersey will soon offer over-the-counter contraceptives, and other news on U.S. reproductive rights.
Repro News This Week: October 20

Independent pharmacies across the country have started to dispense abortion pills [[link removed]] under rules created by the Biden Administration earlier this year.
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Earlier this year, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) permanently removed the in-person dispensing requirement for the drug, mifepristone, and allowed retail and online pharmacies to directly provide medication to patients.
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Branches of major pharmacy chains are expected to follow the move by the independent pharmacies, which will make the medication more accessible to millions of people nationwide.
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In November 2022, anti-abortion groups sued the FDA, attempting to eliminate access to the abortion medication nationwide. The U.S. Supreme Court may hear the case this term.
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New Jersey state officials announced that contraceptives will be available over the counter without a prescription by spring 2024.
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After two state boards advanced rules under a law enacted in January, pharmacists will be able to provide oral, transdermal or vaginal contraceptives such as birth control pills and patches, vaginal rings and diaphragms without a prescription.
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New Jersey will join about 30 other states that permit pharmacists to prescribe contraceptives.
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A federal appeals court temporarily limited Idaho’s ability to enforce its near-total abortion ban in medical emergencies.
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The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals said on October 10 that it would weigh in on the legal challenge to the ban brought by the Biden administration.
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Idaho’s abortion bans have caused a health care crisis in the state, with doctors leaving the state in droves.
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In September, the Center for Reproductive Rights filed a lawsuit challenging the limited scope of the medical exceptions to the state’s bans.
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Did You Know?
A study by the Guttmacher Institute found that North Carolina’s recently enacted abortion restrictions have severely reduced abortion access in the state. The study, published October 11, reports that abortions in the state plummeted by 31% the month after the new measures took effect on July 1. The new restrictions include a ban on abortion care after 12 weeks of pregnancy and an in-person requirement for state-mandated counseling, which forces patients to make a separate trip to a health care facility at least 72 hours before the abortion.
An earlier study by Guttmacher found that in the first six months of 2023, before its new restriction took effect, North Carolina saw a 55% increase in abortions compared to 2020.
“The steep drop we see in North Carolina’s July abortion numbers likely represents both North Carolinians and out-of-state patients who are no longer able to access vital reproductive health care due to arbitrary gestational bans and medically unnecessary barriers,” said the report’s lead researcher Isaac Maddow-Zimet.
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“New Jersey is not going backwards. While other states are taking away rights making it harder to access reproductive health care, our state says no. We will do everything in our power to make reproductive care more accessible, more affordable for every single family.”
- NJ Lieutenant Governor Tahesha Way

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