A new study has found that the number of Australian pharmacies ordering abortion medication increased by almost 50 per cent following the removal of prescribing and dispensing restrictions in 2023. The study has been presented as evidence of improved healthcare access. However, these figures show something very different. (1)
Almost 50 per cent more pharmacies are now participating in a system that makes it easier for unborn children to lose their lives. The research shows that the infrastructure for providing medical abortions has expanded dramatically. By July 2025, there were 48.6 per cent more pharmacies ordering the abortion medication MS-2 Step than would have been expected without the regulatory change. That is being celebrated as progress by The Guardian.(2)
We believe that unborn children are human beings deserving of protection, therefore, expanding access to abortion is not a healthcare success story. It is evidence that Australia has made it easier to end human lives. We need to be careful about allowing words such as “access”, “choice” and “healthcare” to obscure what an abortion actually involves.
MS-2 Step contains mifepristone and misoprostol and is used to medically terminate an intrauterine pregnancy. Mifepristone blocks progesterone, the hormone needed to sustain pregnancy, disrupting the environment that supports the developing baby. Misoprostol then causes uterine contractions and expels the baby. In plain terms, the medication removes the hormonal support necessary for the baby to continue growing, resulting in the death of the unborn child. It sounds graphic, and that's because it is; it is not as simple as taking a pill. Medical abortion involves the death of an unborn child every time. (3)
That child does not become less human because the abortion happens earlier in pregnancy. And the fact that the abortion can now be obtained more conveniently does not make the outcome less significant.
Whose interests are being served?
There is also a broader question that deserves much more attention. As Australia removes barriers to abortion, expands pharmacy access and introduces additional abortion medicines onto the market, we are seeing the development of an increasingly accessible abortion industry.
MS-2 Step is listed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, while newer products such as Arzestra have also entered the Australian market. (4)
This raises legitimate questions about the financial interests involved: who manufactures these medicines, who distributes them, what does the government pay, and who ultimately benefits as the abortion market expands?
We should be demanding transparency about those questions rather than assuming that every expansion of abortion access represents an unqualified public good.
There is an important distinction to make here. The evidence currently available does not establish that pharmaceutical companies have simply pocketed a 50 per cent increase in profits. But that makes the central question no less important.
If Australia is going to invest public resources and remove regulatory barriers to make abortion increasingly accessible, Australians deserve to know exactly where that money goes and what incentives are being created. Especially when it means the tax payer is contributing to more and more abortion costs.
We can do better for women
Women facing an unexpected pregnancy deserve compassion, practical support and genuine choices. But genuine choice means more than making abortion easier to obtain.
A woman should be able to choose life for her child without feeling that financial pressure, relationship difficulties, housing insecurity, workplace concerns or a lack of support have made her feel like abortion is her only realistic option.
The measure of a compassionate society should not be how efficiently it can facilitate the ending of an unborn child's life. It should be how effectively it supports both mother and child. So while the latest figures may demonstrate that Australia's abortion system is becoming more accessible, that does not make the outcome something we should celebrate.
We know every unborn child is a valuable human life, and thus, the real statistic is not the number of pharmacies stocking abortion medication. It is the number of children who will never get the chance to be born.
Edvardsson, K., Schummers, L., Moulton, J. E., Li, X., Cheng, L., Mazza, D., Goldstone, P., & Grossman, D. (2026). Regulatory policy changes and mifepristone access through pharmacies in Australia. JAMA Network Open, 9(10), e2637766; The Guardian. (2026, October 8). Abortion pill access jumps almost 50% after Australia eases restrictions for pharmacies. theguardian.com
The Guardian. (2026, October 8). Abortion pill access jumps almost 50% after Australia eases restrictions for pharmacies. theguardian.com
Healthdirect Australia. (2025, July). MS-2 Step (medical abortion medicine). https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/ms-2-step-medical-abortion-medicine#work
Australian Government Department of Health, Disability and Ageing. (n.d.). MS-2 Step: Item 10211K. Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme https://www.pbs.gov.au/medicine/item/10211K. Therapeutic Goods Administration. (2026, February 3). Arzestra (Anthia Life Sciences Pty Ltd). https://www.tga.gov.au/resources/artg/476885