Mifepristone offers women a safe, private method of terminating an early pregnancy.
However, as soon as the FDA granted approval, anti-choice lawmakers introduced legislation that would deny American women access to the drug. Have Been Proven Safe and Effective. The FDA approved mifepristone, the early option pill, because extensive clinical trials and use in other countries proved that the drug is very safe and very effective in terminating pregnancies of 49 days or less. The FDA decision was based on science, not ideology. Mifepristone has been used since 1981 and is available to women in France, the United Kingdom, Sweden, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Greece, Norway, Switzerland, Luxemburg, China, Israel, the Netherlands, Russia, Ukraine, and Spain.