Colorado colleges to expand abortion medication access
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College campuses across Colorado, including the University of Colorado Boulder, must provide students access to abortion medication starting next summer.
Why it matters: The law expands medication abortion access for college students as the drugs face ongoing legal challenges nationwide.
Driving the news: Gov. Jared Polis signed House Bill 1335 last week, requiring any college or university with a student health center to provide access to abortion medications.
- Schools with pharmacies must stock the medication.
- Campuses without pharmacies can either write prescriptions for off-campus pharmacies or directly dispense the medication.
Zoom in: CU Boulder's Wardenburg Health Center has a pharmacy on campus, meaning it will be required to stock abortion medication.
- The pharmacy does not currently offer abortion medication or services, but it will comply with state law and "update our healthcare services and regulatory requirements" by the 2027 deadline, CU spokesperson Nicole Cousins told Axios.
Zoom out: Mifepristone, one of two drugs commonly used in medication abortions, was approved by the FDA in 2000. The American Medical Association calls it "exceedingly safe and effective."
- Medication abortions account for more than 60% of abortions nationwide.
The latest: A federal appeals court last month temporarily froze federal rules allowing the teleprescribing and mailing of abortion drugs.
- The U.S. Supreme Court has since restored access as the case plays out.
What they're saying: "College students are navigating a nation that continues to undermine their right to abortion care, but Colorado is and will remain a safe haven for reproductive rights," said state Sen. Katie Wallace, a Longmont Democrat who cosponsored the bill.
- "This law will ensure that students who rely on campus health centers are able to access the healthcare they need, when they need it, where they are."
What's next: Campus health centers must comply by Aug. 1, 2027.