Ways to Stock Up on Reproductive Healthcare Meds Before Trump Takes Office
There are multiple telemedicine services that offer mail-order Plan B and medical abortion pills on-demand.
The last time that Donald Trump was president, he facilitating the overturning of Roe v. Wade, a 1973 Supreme Court case that determined that abortion care was protected prior to the viability of the fetus and that the decision to terminate was a private one between a provider and a patient. The Dobbs vs. Jackson case in 2022 decided that the Constitution did not confer the right to abortion and returned regulation of the procedure to state legislatures. This lead to a cascade of issues including restrictive reproductive healthcare policies across states in America, confusion among healthcare providers about how they can provide patient care, and increased maternal mortality rates. We can’t know how a second Trump presidency will restrict access to things like abortion care or birth control, but when it comes to unplanned/ unwanted pregnancies, better to be safe than sorry.
The good news is, there are ways to stock up on medications you may want to have on hand prior to January 2025 (either for yourself or a friend.) Telemedicine has made it possible to both order Plan B and medical abortion pills without an in-person visit. If you have any leftover HSA funds from the year now might be a good time to use some.
Below you’ll find a variety of options for accessing emergency contraception and medical abortion pills:
Plan B / Emergency Contraception
Plan B is a one-dose pill that contains levonorgestrel, a hormone that helps prevent an egg from being released. It's most effective when taken within 72 hours of unprotected sex, but can be taken up to five days after.
When to take Emergency Contraception:
If you have sex without a condom or if the condom breaks, slips, or falls off.
If you have sex and have missed more than 2 days (48 hours) in a row of your combined hormonal contraceptives (pill, patch, or ring).
If you have sex and are more than 3 hours late taking the progesterone only pill.
If you have sex during your fertile window and aren’t on a reliable source of birth control.
Where to get Emergency Contraception:
Amazon pharmacy: Amazon’s online pharmacy sells a few versions of levonorgestrel, from their generic Basic Care version for $15.99 to the brand-name Plan B for around $46.
Lemonaid Health: Lemonaid Health offers the Ella pill for $75 and includes free 1 business day shipping.
Nurx: Nurx offers both generic Plan B ($14.99) and a prescription option called Ella (ulipristal acetate — $15-45 based upon insurance coverage) which can be taken up to 5 days after unprotected sex versus the 3 days that Plan B can be taken. They can either mail it or have the Rx filled at your local pharmacy.
Pandia Health: Panda offers a few different brands of both genetic Plan B and Ella. They charge $26 per pill but if your insurance covers care through Pandia it could be free.
Planned Parenthood Direct: Planned Parenthood’s telemedicine app provides care in 43 states in the US. They can prescribe Ella, which starts at $80 a dose. There are differences in costs depending on which state you live in.
Wisp: Wisp provides up to 6 tablets of Levonorgestrel on their website, starting at $12.50 a pill. You do not have to have a telehealth visit and can purchase it fairly quickly and have it shipped to your house or picked up at a local pharmacy.
Abortion Pills / Medical Abortion
A medical abortion is a procedure that uses prescription pills to end a pregnancy in the early stages. The most common regimen involves taking two pills — mifepristone and misoprostol. Mifepristone blocks progesterone, the hormone needed to support a pregnancy. Misoprostol causes cramping and bleeding to empty your uterus. (source: Cleveland Clinic) The FDA approved this medication as safe and effective up to 10 weeks of fetal gestation. Over 50% of abortions in the US are performed using medical abortion pills.
Where to get Medical Abortion Pills:
Abuzz: Abuzz provides abortion pills for those who are pregnant as well as those who aren’t and want a supply for future use. Costs range by state from $0-$150.
Aid Access: Aid Access provides abortion pills in all 50 states for $150. When ordering, there is an option to select that you aren’t currently pregnant but would like to get pills for the future.
Choices Rising: Choices Rising is available for those with a mailing address in California, Colorado or Hawaii. The virtual clinic provides counseling and prescription of medical abortion pills in both English and Spanish for $199.
Hey Jane: Hey Jane provides abortion pills to residents of CA, CO, CT, DE, DC, HI, IL, ME, MD, MA, MN, NV, NH, NJ, NM, NY, OR, RI, VT, VA, or WA. They accept insurance so the pills could be as little as $0, but they also offer a sliding scale for pricing based upon annual income. They offer a non-visit option where a provider reviews medical history and then prescribes, or a telehealth option for discussing if this is the right treatment option for you. Hey Jane also has chat and phone support with their clinical team during and after the abortion process.
Juniper Midwifery: Available in California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and Washington. The service costs between $50 (local pharmacy pickup) - $100 (mail order) and includes filling out an intake form, secure chat with a healthcare provider, and the prescription. If cost is an issue they also offer financial assistance.
We Take Care of Us: We Take Care of Us’s midwifery-led service provides telehealth care in both English and Spanish. Their community supported abortion program provides medicated abortion care on a sliding scale from $150-$600. Users can order pills to use now or later.
Wisp: Wisp’s medical abortion service costs $200 and includes a telehealth visit with a provider, mail-order medical treatment, and a treatment guide for what to expect. Currently, Wisp can only ship medication abortion treatment to California, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Maine, New Mexico, Washington, New York, and Maryland.
