Miso on the Market in South Texas
Sebastian Agredo
2020
As was reported in a February 20, 2014 post on the Voices in Bioethics Newswire, the rise in implementation of Targeted Regulation of Abortion Providers (also known as TRAP laws) has diminished the availability of abortive services in several states, resulting in a detrimental impact on women's health. Over 200 abortion restrictions have been enacted throughout the country since 2011,[1] leading to the closure of more than 73 abortion clinics.[2] It is not surprising then that this trend has
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... t women with little recourse when it comes to taking charge of their own reproductive health decisions. And nowhere is this becoming more evident than in South Texas, where women have begun to avoid medical clinics altogether and are now turning to a "revolutionary"abortion pill known as misoprostol. Miso, at it is commonly called, works by inducing a miscarriage during the early stages of pregnancy, and it has long been considered a "lifeline"by Latin American women living in countries where abortions are outlawed. A piece written by Erica Hellerstein and published on June 27th in The Atlantic details how misoprostol went from being an over-the-counter ulcer medication sold in Brazilian pharmacies to being the "magic personal solution to a dreaded problem that dared not be discussed."Beginning in 1986, Brazilian women sought a safe alternative to the grisly procedures and complications of underground abortions, which were a byproduct of its criminality and religious admonition. Upon realizing the desired effects of miso on pregnancies, the word spread throughout Latin America, and doctors were noticing a dramatic decline in the number of women coming into hospitals suffering from the horrific medical effects of botched, sloppy abortions. With heavy restrictions being placed on the drug since the discovery of its popularity in the early 1990s, miso has become prevalent in the black market trade and is often sold for up to $60 a pill. The fact that miso can be attributed to nearly half of Brazil's one million annual abortio [...]
doi:10.7916/vib.v1i.6521
fatcat:oyija75qxrexpi23ipr7ubovti