After the Therapeutic Goods Administration relaxed prescribing rules in 2023, the number of Australian pharmacies carrying the abortion pill MS‑2 Step rose by almost 50 %. The change allowed any general practitioner, appropriately trained nurse practitioners and endorsed midwives to prescribe the medication, removed the requirement for pharmacists to be registered to dispense it, and eased administrative hurdles.
Comparing pharmacy ordering data from the two years before and after the changes, researchers from La Trobe University found that by mid‑2025 49 % more pharmacies stocked the drug, increasing from 2,228 to 4,107. The proportion of postcodes with a pharmacy offering MS‑2 Step grew from 915 to 1,292, nearly half of all Australian postcodes. Coverage in regional areas rose from 23 % to 35 %, and the share of pharmacies in remote locations almost doubled, from 12.5 % to 22 %.
Professor Kristina Edvardsson of La Trobe University said the expansion means women can access the medication closer to home, reducing travel and stress, especially for those in rural or disadvantaged circumstances. She noted that increased availability of medical abortion is linked to fewer surgical procedures, citing European data where medical abortion accounts for over 90 % of all abortions.
Dr Anna Noonan of the University of Technology Sydney highlighted the findings as a signal to other countries with stricter regulations, warning that over‑regulation creates unnecessary work for providers and hinders timely care. She emphasized that deregulation improves access, particularly for people with fewer resources.
