The Biden administration is warning pharmacies not to discriminate against women who may seek prescriptions for reproductive health, including some who may be involved in termination of pregnancy.
The Department of Health and Human Services said Wednesday that pharmacies receiving federal money from programs like Medicare and Medicaid cannot discriminate in the way they dispense drugs or advise patients about prescriptions.
The agency noted that discriminating against people based on their pregnancy or related conditions would be a form of sex discrimination.
The announcement comes as the administration seeks to secure reproductive health services for women following a Supreme Court ruling last month that ended the constitutional right to abortion.
On Monday, the administration told hospitals that they “must” provide abortion services if the mother’s life is at risk. The government said the federal Emergency Treatment Guidelines Act preempts state laws in jurisdictions that now ban the procedure without any exceptions. All states now provide an exception for the life of the mother.
President Joe Biden also signed an executive order to try to protect some access to the procedure, but also acknowledged that his administration is limited in what it can do. Earlier this month, he noted that an act of Congress would be needed to restore access to abortion nationwide and called on Americans angered by the Supreme Court’s decision to vote in November.
Wednesday’s actions, like those described Monday, do not reflect a new policy. They are intended to remind care providers of their existing obligations under federal law.
“We are committed to ensuring that everyone has access to health care, without discrimination,” Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra said in a statement. “This includes access to prescription drugs for reproductive health and other types of care.”
The department’s pharmacy guidelines outlined several hypothetical examples of potential discrimination. These include a pharmacy refusing to fill a prescription for mifepristone followed by misoprostol to help manage the complications of miscarriage after a pregnancy loss.
This combination of drugs is also often used in medical abortions.
A pharmacy that refuses to fill a prescription for misoprostol prescribed to treat severe stomach ulcer complications could be discriminating on the basis of disability, HHS said. The agency noted that a pharmacy could also be discriminating if it refused to stock the drug based on its alternative use.
HHS also cited as another example of potential discrimination: a pharmacy refusing to fill a prescription for methotrexate to stop an ectopic pregnancy that grows outside the womb and is not viable.
The federal agency said people who believe their rights have been violated should visit the Office of Civil Rights’ online portal to file a complaint.
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