The Abortion Pill & Offering a Lifeline—Online
- Natasha Entrup
- 1 minute ago
- 2 min read
What is the abortion pill?
Chemical abortion (also known as medication abortion or the abortion pill) is a 2-pill procedure consisting of mifepristone (RU-486) and misoprostol.
Mifepristone works by interrupting progesterone, a necessary hormone for pregnancy to continue. Misoprostol is the second pill in a chemical abortion. It induces the abortion, causing the woman's uterus to empty and expel the preborn baby.
How prevalent is chemical abortion?
Chemical abortion is cited to make up 63% of all abortions acquired in the United States. [1] However, this number is likely higher due to purchases from unregulated online distributors. These websites require no pregnancy confirmation, no in-person physician visit, and no safeguards for women’s health.
A successful abortion always ends with the loss of a human life. However, unregulated chemical abortion access can result in serious health issues and/or fatalities for those who undergo them as well. Without a confirmatory ultrasound, ectopic pregnancy may be overlooked, gestational age may be miscalculated, or a woman may not even be pregnant—putting her life at unnecessary risk.
Risks
Aside from the dangers of forgoing an ultrasound, chemical abortion boasts its own list of complications and side effects. In April of 2025, the Ethics and Public Policy Center conducted the largest ever study on chemical abortion and found that,
"serious adverse events from mifepristone are approximately 22 times more frequent than the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) currently recognizes…” and that, “…following a mifepristone abortion, 10.93 percent of women experience sepsis, infection, hemorrhaging, or another serious or life-threatening adverse event. That is, over one in ten patients experience at least one serious adverse event." [2]
How we can be there for her
At Alight, we speak the truth in love. No woman should ever be exploited or seen as a source of revenue—especially not when she is at her most vulnerable. Our services are no cost not only to keep them accessible to every woman in our community, but to ensure there is absolutely no conflict of interest. Our sole and primary concern is the well-being of the clients we serve (both mom and baby).
A majority of women are accessing abortion online, so that is exactly where we need to be. Meet her with hope in the midst of crisis and sponsor one month of Google ads. One click may be all it takes to save a life.
Sources:
[2] https://eppc.org/news/largest-ever-study-of-abortion-pill-reveals-shocking-number-of-adverse-events/