Advocates say access to abortion pill still an issue in N.S.

Advocates say Nova Scotians’ access to the abortion pill remains a major issue, with one student saying she had to wait nearly three weeks because of barriers including finding a doctor to prescribe the drug, testing delays and billing issues.

The woman, from the Toronto area, says she was five weeks pregnant when she took a home pregnancy test.

But she was almost eight weeks by the time she obtained the abortion pill Mifegymiso - a wait she describes as excruciating, and advocates say fails to realize the potential of the twodrug combination used to terminate early pregnancy.

“I was having severe morning sickness and on top of that feeling a lot of shame. Trying to go through this whole process was daunting and intimidating,” she says.

The student says she booked an appointment at Cape Breton University’s health clinic in Sydney, N.S., as soon as she found out she was pregnant and asked for the abortion pill.

Instead, she was told to call an abortion clinic in Halifax.

“It’s very overwhelming trying to figure out the health care system when you’re facing an unwanted pregnancy,” she says.

Inquiries by The Canadian Press have revealed that only one of six university health clinics contacted across the province will prescribe Mifegymiso, a combination of mifepristone and misoprostol tablets available in Canada since 2016 and publicly funded in Nova Scotia since last November.

The only Nova Scotia university that currently offers medical abortions - via the abortion pill, rather than a surgical procedure - as part of its primary care is St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish. Students at other universities are referred elsewhere, potentially delaying access.

That’s despite data that shows people aged 18-29 are the most likely to obtain an abortion, according to the Canadian Institute for Health Information.

Perhaps surprisingly, even the Halifax Sexual Health Centre formerly Planned Parenthood - does not yet offer Mifegymiso, citing a physician shortage, funding issues and inadequate nursing support.

“The biggest issue continues to be that this is considered a specialized service instead of the primary care that it is,” says Martha Paynter, a Halifax-area nurse and women’s health advocate. “We as clinicians need to step up.”

She adds: “Medical abortion is very time dependent. When you’re eight weeks pregnant with an unwanted pregnancy ... that’s a really difficult moment to become an advocate.”