Approximately two-thirds of surveyed community pharmacies in British Columbia dispensed mifepristone within 3 days, with an additional 12% providing valid referrals, facilitating access to medication abortion.
Despite near-universal geographic coverage where 99% of reproductive-aged females lived within 15-minute driving distance of a dispensing pharmacy, 23% of pharmacies neither dispensed mifepristone timely nor provided referrals, posing persistent access challenges.
Urban pharmacies were paradoxically more likely to not dispense or refer compared to rural pharmacies, indicating systemic or operational barriers despite higher population densities.
Socio-demographic factors such as residential instability and ethnocultural diversity correlated with poorer local availability, underscoring equity considerations in mifepristone access strategies.
Background
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This article was created using several editorial tools, including AI, as part of the process. Human editors reviewed this content before publication.