Oh Yu-Kyoung urges Korea to legalize abortion pill to protect health

By Hong Da-yeong
2026.10.13

Minister Oh Yu-Kyoung of the Ministery of Food and Drug Safety said on the 13th, "In a situation where the illegal use of abortion pills (Mifegyne) continues, I believe we must legalize them in some way." Minister Oh said this at the Ministery of Food and Drug Safety's audit by the National Assembly's Health and Welfare Committee held that day.

Minister Oh said, "Young women in Korea are in a blind spot where they illegally obtain drugs with severe side effects," adding, "It is right to provide remedies through legal means." In response to criticism that an apology is needed to women exposed to unnecessary risks due to delays in approving abortion pills, Oh said, "I feel sorry."

Continued: https://biz.chosun.com/en/en-science/2026/10/13/7PEPI6YY4RCCNORF4OSFRUPRS4/?outputType=amp

13.10.2026

News

abortion law reform

Ministry of Food and Drug Safety

Bombay HC rejects abortion plea by woman citing husband’s alleged deception

The 33-year-old woman argued that the alleged concealment of her husband’s previous marriage had caused severe mental trauma and affected her.

Oct 11, 2026
By Mayura Janwalkar

The Bombay high court on Friday dismissed a petition filed by a 33-year-old married woman seeking an abortion under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act, 1971, observing that she did not fall into any of the categories or situations under which women are permitted to terminate their pregnancy up to the 24th week, under the MTP Rules, 2003.

The Pune resident had sought the termination on the ground that her husband, whom she married on February 16, 2025, had concealed his previous marriage, which fact she stumbled on after discovering certain documents. She said she left her husband’s house following alleged harassment, and subsequently on July 26, learnt that she was 13 weeks pregnant. She approached the court in August and the case was placed before the judges on October 6.

Continued: https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/mumbai-news/no-hc-relief-for-woman-seeking-abortion-on-grounds-of-husband-s-deception-101791656695475-amp.html

11.10.2026

Medical Termination Of Pregnancy (MTP) Act

Korea’s abortion pill plan faces fresh legal questions despite gov’t import clearance

The Legislation Ministry says its opinion allowed drug approval but did not determine whether medication abortion itself is lawful.

October 7, 2026

The legal interpretation that cleared the way for abortion pills in Korea did not decide whether ending a pregnancy itself is lawful, the Ministry of Government Legislation has told a lawmaker.
With no legal standard on abortion in place for seven years, there are questions over whether the government rushed to bring in the drug first.

In August, the Legislation Ministry answered a query from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety on whether abortion pills could receive import approval before the Mother and Child Health Act, which sets out the limited cases in which doctors may perform abortions and covers only surgical procedures, is revised.

Continued: https://www.koreajoongangdaily.com/korea/koreas-abortion-pill-plan-faces-fresh-legal-questions-despite-govt-import-clearance/12907906

07.10.2026

News

abortion pills

Joo Jin-woo

Korean Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology

Lee Jae-kwan

Mifegymiso

Mifegyne

Ministry of Food and Drug Safety

Mother and Child Health Act

India: Ganjam cracks down on sale of abortion pills without prescriptions

PTI
05 October, 2026

Berhampur (Odisha) Oct 5 (PTI) Drug inspectors in Odisha’s Ganjam district have been directed to take stringent action against the sale of medical termination of pregnancy (MTP) kits and other abortion pills without prescriptions, officials said on Monday.

The move is aimed at protecting women’s health, curbing illegal abortions and improving the child sex ratio in the district, Ganjam Collector Keerthi Vasan V said.

Continued: https://theprint.in/india/odisha-ganjam-cracks-down-on-sale-of-abortion-pills-without-prescriptions/3062539/

05.10.2026

Korea Debates Mifegyne Abortion Pill as President Lee Jae-myung Backs Access

Seven years after abortion crime was ruled unconstitutional, doctors push for safe medical abortion and broader reproductive health rights

SoYeon Kim
Oct 3, 2026

On July 14, President Lee Jae-myung said, “Even if it is difficult for the government, we must make sure that Mifegyne can be prescribed appropriately,” accelerating discussions on introducing Mifegyne in Korea. On September 4, he made remarks that effectively formalized the decision to allow the drug.

Mifegyne is an oral medical abortion pill taken in early pregnancy to terminate pregnancy. What happened for Mifegyne to become such a major issue that the president himself mentioned it? A science journalist takes a close, friendly look at it through the lens of science.

Continued: https://www.dongascience.com/en/news/80119

03.10.2026

Commentary

Constitutional Court of Korea

Ministry of Food and Drug Safety

safety of abortion pills

Global – Advancing sexual and reproductive health through curriculum reform: reflections and learnings

FIGO
October 1, 2026

For the past two years, the Collaborate for Women: Abortion and Contraception Care Together (C4W ACCT) initiative has worked to strengthen capacity and national uptake of competency-based education in family planning (FP) and comprehensive abortion care (CAC) across five countries in Africa and Asia. Interprofessional collaboration among OBGYNs and midwives has also been central to these efforts, helping to advance sustainable improvements in women’s health.

As phase 2 of the project draws to a close, the five participating national OBGYN societies – in Bangladesh (OGSB), DRC (SCOGO), Mozambique (AMOG), Nepal (NESOG) and Sierra Leone (SLAGO) – reflect on the progress achieved, the lessons learned and the crucial role professional societies play in advancing curriculum reform and improving Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) services.

Continued: https://www.figo.org/news/advancing-sexual-and-reproductive-health-through-curriculum-reform-reflections-and-learnings

01.10.2026

Commentary

C4W ACCT

Collaborate for women: Abortion and Contraception Care Together

FIGO

International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics

Nepal – ‘Safe abortion imperative to protect women’s life’

Raman Paudel
Mon, 28 September 2026

Kathmandu: When Sunita Adhikari from Duradanda, Lamjung, was approximately 30 weeks pregnant, she traveled to Kathmandu for an ultrasound to check on her baby’s condition in the womb.

However, the information she received from the radiologist brought deep sorrow rather than joy or excitement; the ultrasound detected a heart defect in the fetus. Doctors also informed her that the baby had not developed physically as expected.

Continued: https://risingnepaldaily.com/news/87107

28.09.2026

Commentary

Dr. Balkrishna Sah

Dr. Gobinda Sharan Upadhyay

Nisha Mehta

Safe Motherhood and Reproductive Health Rights Act

ASIA – Putting rights, choices and investment at the heart of bodily autonomy and sexual health

Shobha Shukla
Sept 27, 2026

Bodily autonomy and sexual health are often framed as matters of individual health, personal choice and human rights. But the latest evidence from the Adding It Up 2024 report by Guttmacher Institute shows that meeting sexual and reproductive health needs is not merely a health expenditure—it is a smart investment that can save lives, reduce unintended pregnancies and generate significant economic returns.

Main findings of this report that were presented by Dr Elizabeth A Sully, Guttmacher Institute’s Director of International Research, during a SHE & Rights session organised ahead of World Contraception Day and International Safe Abortion Day, examine the need, impact, and cost of investing in sexual and reproductive healthcare across 128 low- and middle-income countries: 36 countries from Asia, 53 countries from Africa, 23 countries from Latin America and Caribbean and 8 countries each from Europe and Oceania regions.

Continued; https://e-pao.net/epSubPageExtractor.asp?src=features.Spotlight_On_Women.Putting_rights_bodily_autonomy_sexual_health_By_Shobha_Shukla

27.09.2026

Adding It Up

Asian-Pacific Resource and Research Centre for Women

Dr Elizabeth A Sully

Family Planning Investment Impact Calculator

Guttmacher Institute

International Safe Abortion Day

Riju Dhakal

SHE & Rights

World Contraception Day

INDIA – 24-week abortion limit cannot override constitutional rights in exceptional cases, says Jammu and Kashmir HC

The court allowed an 11-year-old girl’s plea for termination after her pregnancy crossed 24 weeks while the matter was under judicial consideration

Zulfikar Majid
26 Sep 2026

Srinagar: The Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh High Court has held that the crossing of the statutory 24-week limit for medical termination of pregnancy cannot, in the peculiar circumstances of a case, by itself deny constitutional protection to a minor rape survivor.

The court allowed an 11-year-old girl’s plea for termination after her pregnancy crossed 24 weeks while the matter was under judicial consideration.

Continued: https://www.deccanherald.com/india/jammu-and-kashmir/24-week-abortion-limit-cannot-override-constitutional-rights-in-exceptional-cases-says-jammu-and-kashmir-hc-4160642

26.09.2026

News

Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh High Court

Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act

Korea – Abortion pill approval moves forward, but legal gaps leave long road ahead

by Choi Eun-ji
Sept. 26, 2026

The government has officially announced plans to introduce mifepristone domestically in the first quarter of next year, accelerating its push to bring the drug into the regulated system. But seven years of legislative inaction have left a tangle of legal and medical obstacles that must be resolved before the drug can take hold in clinical practice.

The issues go well beyond a simple debate over whether to allow the drug. Critics say the National Assembly must urgently pass replacement legislation to address a web of structural questions: whether administrative approval without a legal amendment is lawful, whether in-clinic administration should be mandatory, how to protect physicians' right to decline on conscientious grounds, whether national health insurance should cover the drug, and how to handle the spousal consent provision still on the books.

Continued: https://mbiz.heraldcorp.com/article/10882966

26.09.2026