The news: Costco opted against dispensing the FDA-approved abortion pill mifepristone at its 500+ pharmacy locations, per Bloomberg. The retailer cited a lack of consumer demand for the medication.
How we got here: A cohort of Costco shareholders and members—including faith-based activists, financial advisors, and others—pressured Costco not to dispense mifepristone. The religious groups in particular will now ramp up pressure on CVS and Walgreens to stop dispensing the drug, per Bloomberg.
The organizations sent letters to several pharma players, including Costco, Kroger, Walmart, and Albertsons, urging them not to offer the pill. They noted the millions of dollars they have in each company’s stock.
- For context, Kroger, Albertsons, and Walmart have already chosen not to dispense the abortion pill in their pharmacies, but CVS and Walgreens do in states where it’s legally permissible.
Why it matters: More people are getting medication abortions in states where abortion is legal.
This service usually involves patients picking up mifepristone at their pharmacy, which means more customer foot traffic for companies that offer the medication.
Medication abortions accounted for nearly two-thirds (63%) of tracked abortions in the US in 2023, per the Guttmacher Institute, up 10 percentage points from 2020. More medication abortions are also being conducted over telehealth, which typically entails mifepristone being accessed at a pharmacy or being delivered to a person’s home. By the end of last year, 25% of abortions were conducted over telehealth, up from about 5% before Roe v. Wade was overturned, per data from the Society of Family Planning.
Our take: From the other side, pro-choice shareholders are pushing major retail corporations to offer mifepristone. But Costco taking this position on a polarizing issue could offend many of its customers and reverse the goodwill it has earned by holding firm on its DEI policies amid right-wing criticism. Costco might risk further brand damage if it stands by the reason of weak consumer demand when there’s evidence showing an uptick in medication abortions.
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