The National Abortion Federation estimates that mifepristone will be available for use within 30-45 days of the approval date. This is welcome news not only for American women, but also for medical students and residents who may wish to provide medical abortion as part of their future practice. Mifeprex will offer future physicians another choice in how to provide abortion care to their patients.
Progesterone is needed to sustain a pregnancy.
Mifepristone has been used, in combination with other medications called prostaglandins, for medical abortion since 1988 in France and China, and since the early 1990's in the United Kingdom and Sweden. It has been more recently licensed in nine other European countries and Israe. Millions of women worldwide have safely used mifepristone regimens to end their pregnancies. To End Pregnancy Mifepristone blocks the action of progesterone, which is needed to sustain a pregnancy. Misoprostol causes the uterus to contract, and helps the pregnancy tissue to pass.