Serious safety concerns remain over ‘abortion by post’ scheme

As unsafe home abortions become standard practice in England and Wales, stories of coercion and complications have continued to emerge.

Temporary regulations allowing women who are less than ten weeks pregnant to take abortion pills received through the post became permanent this week.

But women are already speaking out about the dangers, including inadequate checks during telephone consultations, controlling partners and medical and emotional trauma.

Coercion

In an interview with GB News, Kirsty said that she had been forced to have a chemical abortion by her coercive partner in lockdown, during which time the scheme was first introduced.

She explained: “I made the phone call to the abortion clinic, sort of hoping that they’d sort of question my decision, ‘cos I know deep down that I didn’t want to do it.

“I didn’t have any checks, they didn’t even offer me a scan.”

On taking the pills, Kirsty said, fighting back the tears, “once I lifted my blanket, I was saturated in blood, and it wasn’t my blood, it was my baby’s”.

I didn’t have any checks, they didn’t even offer me a scan.

‘Terrifying’

Emily told the Daily Mail she had been sent the pills to abort her baby through the post, after a telephone consultation with abortion provider the British Pregnancy Advisory Service.

Reflecting on the consultation, she added: “It’s a bit concerning I didn’t have to prove I was pregnant. I could have been getting pills for someone else and they’d have no access to their medical information.”

I’ve never felt pain like it. I was terrified.

On taking the second of the two pills which cause the abortion, Emily said: “I have a high pain tolerance. I’ve broken bones and suffer chronic migraines, but I’ve never felt pain like it. I was terrified.”

She was still bleeding some eight weeks later at the time of the interview and warned: “People need to be aware this is not an easy way out. It will stick with me for ever.”

‘Writhing in agony’

Katherine also spoke to the Mail, saying she had second thoughts about having an abortion when the pills arrived at her home.

She described the pain experienced as “horrible. I was writhing in agony. I had horrific cramps for five hours.”

“If I’d had counselling in a clinic, I think I would have decided to go ahead with the pregnancy.”

999

According to a GB News freedom of information investigation, six ambulance services reported a rise in the number of ‘abortion pill’ 999 calls and despatches from 2019 to 2020.

London Ambulance Service saw the number of call-outs rise by 61 per cent, from 93 in 2019 to 150 in 2020.

And South West Ambulance Service reported that numbers more than doubled over the same period.