Americans are divided over whether women should be required to see a doctor in person before receiving abortion pills ahead of the Supreme Court ruling that will determine access to mifepristone, one of two drugs used in medical abortion.
About 50 percent of those interviewed in the new Reuters/Ipsos Poll said they were in favor of women seeing a doctor in person first before taking abortion pills. About 33% were not in favor of the rule and 17% were unsure.
The research comes as the nation’s highest court prepares to rule on one of the highest-profile abortion cases since the court overturned Roe v. Wade. Wade in 2022.
About 67 percent of Republicans said they favor a personal mandate regarding mifepristone, while 37 percent of Democrats said the same.
The Food and Drug Administration has made changes in recent years, allowing mifepristone to be mailed, lowering the dosage and allowing professionals other than doctors to prescribe it.
Medical associations and anti-abortion doctors, represented by the Christian legal group Alliance Defending Freedom, want the justices to uphold an earlier appeals court ruling. If maintained, drug labels would have to be changed, impacting distribution and potentially some access to it.
Respondents on both sides of the aisle said they would support a requirement in states with hardline abortion bans to allow abortions if necessary to save the health of patients facing medical crises.
About 86% of Democrats and 77% of Republicans said they would support it. The percentage of Republicans who supported it was equal to the overall percentage of respondents.
The survey, carried out from May 7 to 14, had 3,934 respondents in the US, with a margin of error of 2 percentage points.
The margin of error for Republicans and Democrats was 3 points.
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