Roe v. Wade invalidated | Québec solidaire wants to facilitate access to the abortion pill

Quebec solidaire demands that the College of Physicians of Quebec lift the current restrictions on the prescription of the abortion pill. The College of Physicians says it is ready to revise its position.

Audrey Pilon Topkara
The Press

“If the United States backs down, I suggest that Quebec move forward,” said Québec solidaire spokesperson and MP Manon Massé, in an interview with The Press. The way to do this is to make the abortion pill available to all women. Because there are barriers right now. »

M^me Massé made this statement in the wake of the overturning of Roe v. Wade by the United States Supreme Court, which will deprive millions of American women of safe access to abortion.

In Quebec, only physicians and specialized nurse practitioners who have undergone theoretical and practical training in voluntary termination of pregnancy (IVG) can prescribe the abortion pill, an abortion method requiring only oral medication at home as well as a follow-up medical examination.

In addition, a woman wishing to terminate her pregnancy must have an ultrasound and meet with a social worker or a psychologist in order to obtain a medical abortion.

According to Manon Massé, extending the prescription of the abortion pill to all physicians in the province will help make this medication more accessible to women, particularly those living in remote areas.

The spokesperson for Québec solidaire adds that it remains complicated for some people to obtain an ultrasound, thus lengthening the time between the consultation with the doctor and the abortion.

The College of mdoctors undergoing revision work

Health Canada approved the use of the abortion pill in July 2015. It became available in Canada in January 2017 and has been available free of charge in Quebec since 2018.

On November 7, 2017, Health Canada announced that it was removing the majority of restrictions on the use of the abortion pill, including the requirement for health professionals to undergo training beforehand. The lifting of the ultrasound requirement followed two years later.

“Health Canada withdrew the requirement for dating ultrasound in April 2019, due to a lack of evidence to support this practice, and because it recognized that “some people wishing to have access to the product [avaient] been able to face unnecessary obstacles or delays,” reads an open letter published last April by the Quebec Abortion Monitoring Committee, which brings together various organizations, workers and experts advocating for the right to abortion, for the President of the College of Physicians of Quebec, Dr.^r Mauril Gaudreault.

While the rest of Canada has ceased to apply the old restrictions, they are still in effect in Quebec. It is the College of Physicians of Quebec (CMQ) that maintains it.

“The College of Physicians has put these directives in place because, in accordance with its primary mission of protecting the public, it is of the opinion that they allow voluntary termination of pregnancy with medication to be carried out in complete safety by competent professionals. and anxious to ensure the follow-up required by the patient’s condition,” said Leslie Labranche, CMQ media relations advisor, by email.

However, she confirms that the CMQ is well aware of the requests for the lifting of restrictions on the prescription of the abortion pill, and says she is ready “to revisit its position”. The CMQ claims to have been consulting experts on this subject for a few months.

“The work started at the start of 2022 will allow [au CMQ] to review the recommendations related to abortion, in particular medical abortion. The College’s work will be spread over the next few months, probably until the fall of 2022. In addition, the College is also working with the Ministry of Health and Social Services on better accessibility, particularly in the regions,” said M^me Branch.