Motivations and Experiences of People Seeking Medication Abortion Online in the United States

Authors

Abigail R. A. Aiken, University of Texas, Austin Kathleen Broussard, University of Texas at Austin Dana M. Johnson, University of Texas at Austin Elisa Padron, University of Texas at Austin
CONTEXT

State legislation restricting access to abortion in the clinic setting raises the possibility that an increasing number of individuals in the United States will self‐manage their abortion at home. Medications sourced online represent a potential pathway to abortion self‐management. Yet, very little is known about the reasons U.S. residents may seek abortion online or their experiences finding medications and information.

METHODS

In January–June 2017, anonymous in‐depth interviews were conducted with 32 people from 20 states who sought abortion medications online (30 women and two men seeking medications for their partners). Participants were asked about their (or their partners’) motivations for considering self‐managed abortion, the sources of medications they identified and any other methods they considered. Transcripts were coded and analyzed according to the principles of grounded theory.

RESULTS

The analysis revealed four key themes: Seeking abortion medications online can be a response to clinic access barriers both in states with and in ones without restrictive abortion laws; self‐managed abortion can be a preference over clinical care; online options offer either information or medications, but not both; and the lack of trusted online options can delay care and lead to consideration of ineffective or unsafe alternatives.

CONCLUSION

Current online options for abortion medications leave many important needs unmet, particularly for women who encounter barriers to obtaining clinic‐based abortion services. There is a public health justification to reduce clinic access barriers and to make medication abortion that is sourced online and managed at home as safe and supported as possible.

Author's Affiliations

Abigail R.A. Aiken is assistant professor, LBJ School of Public Affairs, and faculty research associate, Population Research Center; Kathleen Broussard is a graduate student, Department of Sociology, and graduate research trainee, Population Research Center; Dana M. Johnson is a graduate student, LBJ School of Public Affairs; and Elisa Padron is an undergraduate student, College of Natural Sciences—all at the University of Texas at Austin.

Disclaimer

The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of the Guttmacher Institute.
Volume 50, Issue 4
December 2018
|
Pages 157 - 163

First published online:

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1363/psrh.12073
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1363/psrh.12073