Abortion is never easy. There is the anguish of the decision, the invasive nature of the procedure, and sometimes an ugly confrontation with right-to- life forces lying in wait outside the clinic door. But imagine if abortion could be a truly private matter. Say, something as easy as visiting a doctor, getting a few pills, returning home to swallow them, then checking back a few days later to make sure that all went as planned.
Science and politics are now conspiring to make that scenario -- scary to some, a godsend to others -- a reality, one that could allow abortion to be a truly private decision, albeit still not an easy one. Doctors have reported on a pivotal breakthrough in the use of the controversial French abortion drug known as RU 486: a woman who takes the drug will no longer have to go to a clinic for a follow-up injection to induce contractions. Instead, the entire procedure will involve simply taking two sets of pills. Concurrently, President Clinton has firmly signaled a willingness to reconsider the policies of the Reagan and Bush Administrations, which barred RU 486 from the U.S.
The resulting social upheaval could transform one of the nation's most divisive political debates by making abortion far more difficult to regulate. And eventually it could mean abortions will become simpler, safer and more accessible not only throughout the U.S. but also around the world.
Dr. Etienne-Emile Baulieu, the inventor of RU 486, and his French colleagues describe the successful tests of the no-injection method in the New England Journal of Medicine. "This new regimen," they conclude, "is simpler and potentially allows greater privacy than any other abortion method." In a tough accompanying editorial, the Journal brands efforts to block use of the drug in the U.S. a "disgrace."
Those political barriers, however, are quickly crumbling. Two days after his Inauguration, President Clinton ordered his Administration to "promote the testing, licensing and manufacturing" of RU 486. Until then, the French manufacturer of the drug, Roussel Uclaf, and its German parent company, Hoechst AG, had steadfastly shied away from becoming involved in the American market for fear of infuriating antiabortion activists. But in April, at the instigation of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Roussel announced a compromise: it agreed to license RU 486 to the U.S. Population Council, a nonprofit organization based in New York City, which in turn would run clinical tests.
As a result, the abortion pill could become available through a testing program later this year. The Oregon and New Hampshire legislatures have already volunteered their states as test sites, and the FDA is enthusiastic. Says commissioner David Kessler: "If there is a safe and effective medical alternative to a surgical procedure, then we believe it should be available in this country." Although testing a new drug generally takes seven to 10 years, RU 486 has been so widely used in France that U.S. approval could come in as little as two to three years. In the meantime, the testing will enable at least 2,000 women to use the pill.