Washington state stocks up on abortion drug as federal ruling on access looms

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee announced Tuesday the state has purchased 30,000 doses of the abortion drug mifepristone in preparation for a federal court decision that could limit access to the medication.

The move comes as a federal judge in Texas is poised to issue a ruling on a case that could limit the availability mifepristone nationwide.

"We will not allow a judge in Texas to deny the right of Washington women to this safe drug," Inslee said at a press conference.

Inslee said the University of Washington will stockpile an additional 10,000 doses, providing the state with about a four-year supply of the medication.

Lawmakers are also introducing a bill Tuesday to permit the state Department of Corrections to distribute the medication to health care providers in the state. The newly announced legislation is being sponsored by Sen. Karen Keiser (D-Des Moines) and Rep. Jessica Bateman (D-Olympia).

Mifepristone has been available in the United States for more than two decades. It is typically used in conjunction with the drug misoprostol to end early pregnancy.

According to the state, medication abortions account for about 60% of abortions in Washington. The Department of Health reports that about 800 medical abortions occur in the state each month.

As the country awaits a ruling in the Texas case, Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson is co-leading a multi-state lawsuit with Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum to challenge current FDA regulations for accessing mifepristone.

"It is our view that those restrictions are unlawful and unnecessary," Ferguson said.

The Legislature is also working on several other abortion protection measures, including a bill to "shield" people seeking or providing abortions in Washington from out-of-state lawsuits and another to reduce the cost of abortion care services.