Abortion pills by mail in every state.

Many states allow legal access to abortion pills through clinics or telehealth services. People who get pills in states where these services are legal should face no legal risk.  

Pills are available by mail in all states, even in states that ban clinic-based abortion care. This is possible because some states have “shield laws” that protect clinicians when they provide telehealth care to someone in another state. People in all states can also get abortion pills from alternate suppliers like international online clinics, community networks, and websites that sell pills. We mark alternate suppliers with an alert icon ⚠️ in our Guide to let you know that they may have legal risk.

To understand the potential legal risks of using alternate suppliers, you can contact the ReproLegal Helpline, a free legal resource that can help answer your questions: visit reprolegalhelpline.org or call or text 844-868-2812.

Some states have laws against abortion. These laws mean that with limited exceptions medical providers and clinics in those states can’t do an abortion procedure or provide abortion pills.

A ban that blocks providers from offering care does not necessarily block a person from using pills on their own. However, a person who self-manages their abortion can face legal risk: people in the US are criminalized for all kinds of reasons, with outsized impact on certain identities or socioeconomic backgrounds.

People in states that ban abortion can still get abortion pills by mail from telehealth providers in “shield law” states (see above) or alternate suppliers, like international online clinics, websites that sell pills, and community networks that mail them for free. We mark these shield providers and alternate suppliers with an alert icon ⚠️ in our Guide to let you know there could be legal risk.

People who live in states that ban abortion sometimes travel to a state where abortion is legal to get care. However, traveling to get care could be risky for some people, for instance if they are not free to leave their home or do not want to risk going through an immigration checkpoint (which can be within 100 miles of any US border).

The Repro Legal Helpline provides free and confidential legal advice that can help people better understand the laws and legal risk they may face. Contact them online or call 844-868-2812.

This is a really hard question to answer.

We have some information about what has happened in the past. From 2000 to 2020, at least 61 people who have self-managed an abortion or have helped someone else were arrested or prosecuted. During that same time, many people self-managed abortions (tens of thousands or more).

It is unclear how new abortion laws will affect future criminalization of people for self-managing an abortion.

Those who are already at greater risk of criminalization because of their race, gender identity, economic status, or other factors may have a higher risk of prosecution.

The Repro Legal Helpline provides free and confidential legal advice that can help people better understand the laws and legal risk they may face. Contact them online or call 844-868-2812.

Taking abortion pills is not a criminal act in most states. But, some people who have used abortion pills on their own have gotten in legal trouble in the United States.

The most common ways people get in trouble are:

Once someone decides to have an abortion, they should be able to do so safely, effectively, and with dignity. No one should be arrested or jailed for ending their own pregnancy.

If someone gets into trouble for having an abortion, it is important for them to get legal help. Organizations that offer legal help are:

• Repro Legal Helpline provides free, confidential legal support online or at 844-868-2812. They also defend people who are prosecuted or threatened with prosecution for self-managing their abortion. This fact sheet also has some great information about legal issues.
• Pregnancy Justice defends women who are pregnant and attempt to have abortion, actually have an abortion, or are mistaken as someone who has had an abortion.