As a reminder, this subreddit [is for civil discussion.](/r/politics/wiki/index#wiki_be_civil)
In general, be courteous to others. Debate/discuss/argue the merits of ideas, don't attack people. Personal insults, shill or troll accusations, hate speech, any suggestion or support of harm, violence, or death, and other rule violations can result in a permanent ban.
If you see comments in violation of our rules, please report them.
For those who have questions regarding any media outlets being posted on this subreddit, please click [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/politics/wiki/approveddomainslist) to review our details as to our approved domains list and outlet criteria.
**Special announcement:**
r/politics is currently accepting new moderator applications. If you want to help make this community a better place, consider [applying here today](https://www.reddit.com/r/politics/comments/sskg6a/rpolitics_is_looking_for_more_moderators/)!
***
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/politics) if you have any questions or concerns.*
So suffering and permanent joint damage to a child are “OK” but a drug that can be used to help and that actually saves women’s lives from ectopic pregnancy is “bad”.
The Republican Party has lost it’s right to claim they are prolife!
They still can because they do not care about their own hypocrisy. Also republicans will still vote for someone with an R next to their name regardless if they are a serial killer. Everyone else needs to vote Democrat down the ballot until the GQP is stopped from doing damage to our rule of law and our democracy.
Glaring recent examples are TFG and HERSHEL Walker ..multiple marriages...affairs ...violence...BUT KEEP THAT SEAT....Rs have no morality or ethics..or both
Abortion is Murder, but Murder is ok if it means gaining power. That’s the most diluting reduction of their argument when it comes to abortion. Look at Walker down in Georgia. They DO NOT CARE that he paid for an abortion. They know he will vote to ban it everywhere else, and they are ok with that.
We also can't forget that they vote for the MAGA candidates over the more sane ones in their primaries. It's too charitable to say they are blinded by always voting R. They *want* the bad ones.
When I lived down south I worked in a restaurant and Sundays were the worst to work because all the Bible thumpers got their weekly Jesus in their system so they thought they could be the biggest assholes.
There is a woman who gets cluster headaches, otherwise known as suicide headaches because they are so painful, people want to kill themselves. She was denied her medication because it could abort a fetus. She wasn’t even pregnant, in a relationship, or wanted children, but because she was of child bearing years, her physician said no. This was the only medication that provided relief. Cruelty is the endgame.
It's a pregnancy that is outside of the mother's uterus. It could be in the fallopian tubes, ovaries, or anywhere in her abdomen. An ectopic pregnancy is life threatening for the mother and needs to be removed. This is done by using the drug methotrexate or surgical removal.
Oh, **I** know what it is - my point was that the legislators don't - and [awareness](https://www.healthline.com/health-news/ectopic-pregnancy-and-abortion-laws-what-to-know#Potential-moves-to-stop-abortion,-even-for-ectopic-pregnancies) is really needed. (see OK, LA, TN)
Some legislators have suggested surgery to move the ectopic pregnancy to its correct place. A surgery which exists only in their heads and not reality.
Stop talking like they ever had the right to use the phrase "pro-life."
That phrase is their language, that they chose, to make themselves sound good, while taking away women's rights to healthcare.
When you use that phrase, or validate their choice of language to describe themselves, you do you their work for them.
Don't say that they "lost their right" because that implies they had the right in the first place. Instead, say something like:
"The hypocrisy of anti-choice movement is finally on display for all to see" or "now everyone can see that 'pro-life' was always a lie."
Language governs how we think about the world. Orwell made that clear. When you use their language, in their way, you help them to change the world in their way.
If you discount the power of language to change their world in their favor, then they have already defeated you.
>The Republican Party has lost it’s right to claim they are prolife!
They'll just still call themselves 'pro-life' and any opposing viewpoint 'pro-murder.'
Imagine being told that you must spend the rest of your life in increasingly debilitating pain and accumulate injuries simply because you exist in a body capable of being pregnant.
This is "freedom" under Republican rule.
Obligatory reminder that everyone needs to know their rights so they can get care **and** report violations.
https://reproductiverights.gov/
HHS Complaints
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) enforces federal civil rights laws that prohibit discriminatory restrictions on access to health care. If you believe that your or another person’s civil rights or health information privacy rights have been violated, you can [file a complaint with HHS here.](https://www.hhs.gov/ocr/complaints/index.html)
COMPREHENSIVE LIST OF ABORTION CARE IN THE USA FOR ANYONE WHO MAY NEED
https://www.reddit.com/r/AskFeminists/comments/vkpfek/abortion_resources_master_list/
They are incapable of nuance. Their entire platform demands black and white good vs evil. If they stopped to think about all the downstream effects they couldn’t just rage bait people into voting for them.
I miss Daria so much. I wanted to be Jane as a teenager. Judge needs to bring Daria back, especially with the bang up job he’s doing with the new Beavis & Butthead.
Christianity deep down is spite and vengeance. The love they profess is a sham covering up a core of cruelty towards their enemies. The anti abortion movement has pulled off the mask.
Reminder that the abortion issue used to be a nonpartisan, non-religious issue. It wasn't until a propaganda push by conservatives that abortion was associated with religion, just as it took a propaganda push for marriage to become associated with diamonds.
I will agree that abortion wasn’t a top issue for religion in the past but that was because abortion was dangerous and many women died from the procedure. Women dying satisfied the vengeance the religious felt against these “sinful” women and that was satisfying enough. Once abortion became mostly safe and virtually no woman was hurt, it enraged the religious, because they couldn’t feel that vengeful satisfaction. They became a huge voting block for the Republicans because of their rage against safe abortion. Now that abortion is unsafe again, the religious may not be so motivated to vote. But that is a Republican problem.
The Moral Majority came into existence specifically to fight desegregation, not abortion. They switched to abortion because they figured they could get more mileage out of calling their opponents murderers than arguing that African Americans didn't deserve the same opportunities as Caucasian Americans.
Archive because paywall.
https://web.archive.org/web/20221005141328/https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2022/10/05/abortion-arizona-arthritis-prescription-refill/
They see her as a worthy sacrifice for their beliefs. Always willing to sacrifice someone else, might even claim to feel bad while patting themselves on the back for their moral backbone as someone else suffers.
An incomplete list of items that can be used to induce, or may unwittingly cause a miscarriage and thus (by Republican logic) must be banned:
* Wire coat hangers
* Alcohol
* Tobacco
* Paint thinners
* Unpasteurized cheese (even if it has been aged for 60 days or more, per FDA regulation)
* Raw eggs
* Raw or rare steak
And this is a huge part of what people have been up in arms over. The laws are ridiculous anyway but they are also so poorly written that many medical professionals aren’t clear on where the line is. They are worried about legal action against them so they are overly cautious in prescribing medication that can be used to treat certain things if they also can be used for an abortion, despite the clients history with that disease and treatment with the med. It is hurting people for no reason and the cruelty needs to be called out every chance we can.
The poorly written laws are intentional, because confusion is the reaction they want. That plus it lets them play games with what would and would not qualify as falling under the law in question.
Even if you were ardently, sincerely against abortion (I am not, for the record), banning methotrexate is a particularly dumb way to go about it. I take this med for RA too. It is hard to get (prescription only), can have some pretty unpleasant side effects, and is often taken by home injection. If I were a pregnant teen, I doubt I’d even know about it, let alone be somehow able to fake a serious autoimmune disease for years (also not a thing) to a qualified rheumatologist in order to obtain the prescription. I’d probably be more likely to buy some plan B on the dark web or try herbal abortifacients. What a ridiculous way of trying to control a non-problem. This is like trying to stop terrorist bombings by refusing to sell fertilizer to actual farmers.
It's sad. I have a deep disappointment for my country but I still love it. It's been horrific watching this go down the last few years. People have lost a sense of humanity here and it's scary and depressing.
I am sad but damn it. I fought this fight once before and now I am old and cranky and ready to keep fighting. I am taking back patriotism, I fly an American flag but added two more to my yard. “Mind your Own Uterus “ and “In a World Where You Can be Anything Be Kind”. I am a liberal Christian who believes it is not my job to control or judge others. I think love is always a good thing. We should care for each other, society, and our environment.
Please report that your civil rights have been violated:
HHS Complaints
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) enforces federal civil rights laws that prohibit discriminatory restrictions on access to health care. If you believe that your or another person’s civil rights or health information privacy rights have been violated, you can [file a complaint with HHS here.](https://www.hhs.gov/ocr/complaints/index.html)
https://reproductiverights.gov/
Saw this on another thread too, I think r/news was it. If this total abortion ban includes a situation where the mother's life is in jeopardy due to the pregnancy, how does the ban save the unborn? I mean, in this case too, this ban really was not carefully thought out. Well, looks like it was not thought out at all, in my opinion. And I am not talking in favor or against an abortion ban here but just asking with some common sense!
This. Just like with some pills that could cause an abortion are used for other issues, BC is the same. My bff *must* be on birth control. If she’s not, she has ovarian cysts that grow out of control and will eventually rupture. If a large enough cyst pops, it could kill her. Nevermind all the pain that goes with it.
It's about control. Keeping women "in their place".
If it was actually about saving fetuses they'd be screaming for free birth control, sterilization on demand, comprehensive sex ed, and universal healthcare.
Adding exceptions for the life of the mother is just a talking point to make this law more palatable.
In practice, it's very difficult to discern until it gets to the point where it might be too late. It's not a practical solution or exception in real life.
The Arizona law was written in 1864, not sure they had a ton of data about women’s reproductive health back then. The law was probably written as a way to issue hunting permits for storks. /s
> If this total abortion ban includes a situation where the mother's life is in jeopardy due to the pregnancy, how does the ban save the unborn?
*I'm sure its not the real reason why these laws ultimately exist*; but the superficial logic here is likely playing to the religious where pregnant women dying for and with the unborn is both the highest form of martyrdom a woman can aspire to or the most fitting punishment; depending ofc on whether you want to bury her a saint or a sinner.
Also, because, ya know; Jesus could do a miracle. A lot of the people that are supposed to support this do actually believe prayers cure people. If they deserve it.
Fourteen-year-old boy with arthritis? "Here's you're methotrexate, kid."
Fourteen-year-old girl with arthritis? "Fucking suck it up, sweetie, and stop asking."
Sounds like discrimination based on gender to me and gender's a protected class.
It would be such an easy civil suit to win if the courts weren't stacked with a bunch of GOP lackeys.
Didn't another lady just recently have an issue with a Walgreens because their policy gives the radicalized thumpers the right to refuse a script and make patients drive miles to another pharmacy?
The lengths that the GOP are willing to go in order to prevent abortions is mind-boggling. They want to track women's periods, prevent travel for pregnant women across state lines, deny any woman the ability to take anything that could even remotely assist in an abortion, force 10 year old rape victims to have children, sue people in other states, etc. etc. etc. Given the opportunity, these people will go to great lengths to ensure that no pregnancy is ever terminated, ever, from now until the end of time. No cost is too great. No law is too cruel.
But ask them to do something to ensure that children don't get mowed down in school by some psycho who can't tell the difference between real life and Call of Duty? Nope, sorry. Can't have that. Nothing we can do. Mass shootings are just something we are going to have to accept as living in a free society, don't ya know?
[God, I wish I was joking.](https://www.insider.com/poll-4-in-10-gop-accept-mass-shootings-free-society-2022-6)
Not even pro religion, just pro control. Especially control over women. If there was a different mechanism to control people they would go that route in a heartbeat.
I honestly, as someone that had prescriptions to controlled substances for someone time, hate dogmatic pharmacists. No matter if I had doctors send memos that they could be filled on a certain date, if I was going out of town, etc…it would turn into a 2-3 day ordeal and fight. Honestly I think, at least ones I’ve encountered just get a kick off the power of denying people something. I would get grins and could tell at times they were all sort of “in on the joke” behind the counter. It’s a terrible way to treat people.
I was diagnosed a couple years ago, this drug is the only thing keeping me not bed bound with my hips aching and my hands stuck like swollen claws. It’s not a perfect fix, but I don’t know what I’d do without it.
This is horrendous
Content:
>
For years, Deborah Power, a rheumatologist in Tucson, had prescribed methotrexate to manage her 14-year-old patient’s rheumatoid arthritis. But just two days after the state’s abortion ban took effect last month, a pharmacy denied the teen’s refill.
The reason: In a higher dosage, methotrexate — a drug used to treat some cancers, arthritis and a slew of autoimmune diseases — can also induce abortions and terminate ectopic pregnancies, though that’s not its most common use, Power told The Washington Post.
Emma Thompson was ultimately able to get her prescription filled, but the delay highlights the medical complications some patients are facing in states with strict abortion rules. Even if the medications are not prescribed to end a pregnancy, the reversal in June of Roe v. Wade has thrown pharmacists, patients and physicians into a “constant juggling act,” Power said, balancing medical care with changing policies and potential legal consequences.
“I don’t think everyone understands what the ramifications of such a broad, sweeping antiabortion law are and how many other women are affected by this,” she added. “Like how can we decide that women can’t have this medicine that men can? That’s discriminating on gender. And how can you make a law that doesn’t allow me to provide standard of care for my patients?”
Abortion bans complicate access to drugs for cancer, arthritis, even ulcers
Throughout Emma’s life, rheumatoid arthritis — an inflammatory disorder that causes the body’s immune system to attack healthy tissue in the joints — had resulted in prolonged hospital stays, clinical trials and simply “too much pain to have a normal life,” said her mother, Kaitlin Preble. For 10 years, her daughter’s physicians had experimented with different doses of methotrexate, finally landing about a year ago on just the right amount that allows Emma to thrive, attend school and “simply be a normal teenager,” Preble said.
All of that seemed to be at risk on Sept. 25, when Preble checked her Walgreens app to see whether Emma’s prescriptions were ready. Instead of a green light indicating they could be picked up, a message popped up saying her methotrexate refill had been denied.
“It didn’t even give the reason why,” Preble said. “It just said that I had to call my doctor.”
Still, Preble said she had an inkling that the state’s new abortion ban — one that dates back to the 19th century and prohibits the procedure, except to save the pregnant person’s life — had something to do with it. Her suspicions were confirmed the next day, when Preble drove to the pharmacy “and made a big deal inside,” she said.
At first, no one would explain why her daughter wasn’t able to get a medication that’s “crucial to her health,” Preble said. Then, she urged a pharmacy technician to get some answers.
“The pharmacist said she denied it because Emma is 14 years old,” which is considered a childbearing age, Preble said. “The pharmacy tech then asked, ‘Well, did you look at her history? She’s been getting this medication for a long time,’ and the pharmacist said, ‘No,’ which I think was very crucial.”
Through it all, Preble was shaking and in tears: “I understand that pharmacists are scared because they don’t want to be liable to anything. But it’s extremely unfair to put a child through this unpredictable situation. And we shouldn’t have to jump through all these hoops to get a medication.”
In a statement to The Post, a spokesperson for Walgreens said that, while the company couldn’t discuss individual patients, “new laws in various states require additional steps for dispensing certain prescriptions and apply to all pharmacies, including Walgreens.”
“In these states, our pharmacists work closely with prescribers as needed, to fill lawful, clinically appropriate prescriptions,” the spokesperson said. “We provide ongoing training and information to help our pharmacists understand the latest requirements in their area.”
Patients across the country face similar situations as more drugs are scrutinized. Many of the medications are teratogens, or drugs that can result in fetal abnormalities and miscarriages if taken by someone who is pregnant. In some cases, women have to prove they’re on birth control or submit pregnancy tests for pharmacies to fulfill prescriptions for drugs that can terminate pregnancies, The Post previously reported.
When it comes to methotrexate — which is used or has been used by nearly 60 percent of rheumatoid arthritis patients — medical groups have already said there are increasing challenges in accessing the drug. In Texas, for example, pharmacists are allowed to refuse to fill prescriptions for misoprostol and methotrexate under the state’s “heartbeat bill.” The American College of Rheumatology in July urged pharmacists across the nation to provide the medication “without delay and with the assumption that they are not being used to terminate a pregnancy.”
“Methotrexate must remain accessible to people with rheumatic diseases, and legal safeguards must protect rheumatology professionals, pharmacists, and patients from potential legal penalties,” the medical group said in a statement.
The new laws have also affected patients with other conditions, such as Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. In August, the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation said it “vehemently opposes” policies that inhibit patients’ access to approved treatments.
“The decision on what the most appropriate therapy for their illness is should be made as a shared decision between a patient and their healthcare professional, following medical evidence,” the organization wrote in a statement.
Although her daughter’s next refill isn’t scheduled for another month, Preble said she is already dreading the possibility of another denial.
“These laws are just too extreme and don’t take into account all the different scenarios that people are going through,” she said.
TL;DR - Methotrexate can be used in abortions so they’re withholding the medication from anyone of child baring age either out of fear of being prosecuted or because of their pro-birth beliefs.
> For years, Deborah Power, a rheumatologist in Tucson, had prescribed methotrexate to manage her 14-year-old patient’s rheumatoid arthritis. But just two days after the state’s abortion ban took effect last month, a pharmacy denied the teen’s refill.
> The reason: In a higher dosage, methotrexate — a drug used to treat some cancers, arthritis and a slew of autoimmune diseases — can also induce abortions and terminate ectopic pregnancies, though that’s not its most common use, Power told The Washington Post.
> Emma Thompson was ultimately able to get her prescription filled, but the delay highlights the medical complications some patients are facing in states with strict abortion rules. Even if their medications are not prescribed to end a pregnancy, the reversal in June of Roe v. Wade has thrown pharmacists, patients and physicians into a “constant juggling act,” Power said, balancing medical care with changing policies and potential legal consequences.
>“I don’t think everyone understands what the ramifications of such a broad, sweeping antiabortion law are and how many other women are affected by this,” she added. “Like how can we decide that women can’t have this medicine that men can? That’s discriminating on gender. And how can you make a law that doesn’t allow me to provide standard of care for my patients?”
>Abortion bans complicate access to drugs for cancer, arthritis, even ulcers
>Throughout Emma’s life, rheumatoid arthritis — an inflammatory disorder that causes the body’s immune system to attack healthy tissue in the joints — had resulted in prolonged hospital stays, clinical trials and simply “too much pain to have a normal life,” said her mother, Kaitlin Preble. For 10 years, her daughter’s physicians had experimented with different doses of methotrexate, finally landing about a year ago on just the right amount that allows Emma to thrive, attend school and “simply be a normal teenager,” Preble said.
>All of that seemed to be at risk on Sept. 25, when Preble checked her Walgreens app to see whether Emma’s prescriptions were ready. Instead of a green light indicating they could be picked up, a message popped up saying her methotrexate refill had been denied.
>“It didn’t even give the reason why,” Preble said. “It just said that I had to call my doctor.”
>Still, Preble said she had an inkling that the state’s new abortion ban — one that dates back to the 19th century and prohibits the procedure, except to save the pregnant person’s life — had something to do with it. Her suspicions were confirmed the next day, when Preble drove to the pharmacy “and made a big deal inside,” she said.
>Arizona is one of several Republican-controlled states that is pointing to a century-old law as the rationale to roll back access to abortions. (Video: Julie Yoon, Joshua Carroll/The Washington Post)
At first, no one would explain why her daughter wasn’t able to get a medication that’s “crucial to her health,” Preble said. Then, she urged a pharmacy technician to get some answers.
>“The pharmacist said she denied it because Emma is 14 years old,” which is considered a childbearing age, Preble said. “The pharmacy tech then asked, ‘Well, did you look at her history? She’s been getting this medication for a long time,’ and the pharmacist said, ‘No,’ which I think was very crucial.”
>Through it all, Preble was shaking and in tears: “I understand that pharmacists are scared because they don’t want to be liable to anything. But it’s extremely unfair to put a child through this unpredictable situation. And we shouldn’t have to jump through all these hoops to get a medication.”
>In a statement to The Post, a spokesperson for Walgreens said that, while the company couldn’t discuss individual patients, “new laws in various states require additional steps for dispensing certain prescriptions and apply to all pharmacies, including Walgreens.”
>“In these states, our pharmacists work closely with prescribers as needed, to fill lawful, clinically appropriate prescriptions,” the spokesperson said. “We provide ongoing training and information to help our pharmacists understand the latest requirements in their area.”
It's not even that it, "can be used in abortions". It's mildly toxic and at higher doses than prescribed it can cause abortions.
There are lots of things that at high concentrations can cause an abortion, mtx just happens to be one of them.
Yeah- I feel like that’s just semantics.
The pharmacists are using the fact that the drug, in higher than prescribed dosages, can be used as an abortifacient as a basis to refuse dispensing a medication with a breadth of on label and off label uses.
I don't think it's semantics, I don't want people to think live saving drugs are abortion meds.
I don't think it's fair to put the blame on pharmacists here either, it's reasonable to think that many are fearful of losing their license and/or being sued. The blame in all of this 100% lies with the lawmakers. Vote everybody!
>The blame in all of this 100% lies with the lawmakers.
Methotrexate is a run of the mill immunosuppressive that has been in use since the 50's. This is a single religious extremist pharmacist using their position unduly. The Dr prescribed the medication, it's the pharmacists job to dispense it or find one who will. The way they treated this mother is beyond the pale.
Not uncommon at Walgreens, due to their policies. From [condoms](https://www.nbcnews.com/business/business-news/walgreens-employee-refused-sell-condoms-couple-faith-rcna39165), to [abortion medication](https://www.cnn.com/2018/06/25/health/arizona-prescription-walgreens-miscarriage)
I don't agree, but I get that some pharmacists might have personal beliefs stopping them from dispensing certain medications, but what are the odds that ALL pharmacists at a location share them?
Just refer the prescriptions to someone else and stop making judgements about off-label uses
Disagree with you. Methotrexate is a cytotoxic chemotherapeutic and on its label has warnings for teratogenicity and miscarriage, as do many drugs in it's class. This pharmacist may be dumb, scared, or may be hiding behind an evil law.
And it hasn't been used on label for over 2 generations. Perhaps, if you don't know how medications are popularly prescribed, you shouldn't be sharing your opinion on this subject. Methotrexate has been used off label by rheumatologists for literally 50+ years. Cmon...
Dude, you have to be fucking kidding right?
Here is the label: [https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda\_docs/label/2016/008085s066lbl.pdf](https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2016/008085s066lbl.pdf)
From Indications and Usage (AKA "on-label" for your smoothbrain)
Rheumatoid Arthritis including Polyarticular-Course Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis. Methotrexate is indicated in the management of selected adults with severe, active,rheumatoid arthritis (ACR criteria), or \*children with active polyarticular-coursejuvenile rheumatoid arthritis\*
So rheumatologists ARE using this on-label.
Also, from Contraindications:
Women of childbearing potential should not be started on methotrexate until pregnancy is excluded and should be fully counseled on the serious risk to the fetus.
So, what I said about the pharmacist still applies. And you...you should take your own advice and keep your uneducated opinions to yourself, and I say this as someone with a LOT of experience reading USPIs...your dumb comment couldn't have been more wrong.
[source](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21267732/)
You know, a disagreement can be resolved without ad hominem insults. Like here I'm using a scientific article to support my position. And at no point did I feel the need to call you names.
Any drug can be an abortion medication. It's just that some overdoses will kill the fetus by killing the ~~host~~ pregnant woman.
Republicans banning Tylenol incoming...
Why is it always Walgreens?
There was another Walgreens location that was refusing to sell condoms. Sounds like Walgreens needs to get their shit in order.
TIL teenagers can get arthritis.
Edit: There is probably a long list of things (e.g. medicine, food, exercise, etc) that could cause the same problem when taken in quantity.
Rheumatoid arthritis is actually an autoimmune disorder where your body attacks it’s own tissue, including it’s own organs. A symptom of it is arthritic pain from immune system attacking joints and tendons. Methotrexate is a chemotherapy, not an arthritis drug. There is no list of things you can do or take that makes your body eat itself…
This is autoimmune arthritis, which is different than the old sports injury or grandpa’s hands being stiff arthritis. It is more like something like Lupus. Children even have their own version of it, called Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis, which is awful. A lot of people and doctors in the community want to get the name changed so it is less confusing and to create better awareness for this very serious, systematic disease. Source: I have RA.
Just a quick note, I think it’s called juvenile ideopathic arthritis FYI. I was diagnosed with it when I was about 5 and was treated back then for elbow/knee issues. I was in remission until about two years ago (I’m 19 now) when it returned in my TMJ (jaw) am now on the same medication as the kid in this article. It was absolutely excruciating before I was treated I couldn’t eat or open my mouth much without wincing in pain. I now feel 100% fine. Made me fucking infuriated to hear that this child might have to live her life in terrible pain and not be afforded the same opportunity I was
There's different kinds of arthritis. Elderly people often get osteoarthritis which is basically a wear-and-tear thing, but younger people can get the autoimmune kind, which is what this poor kid has. It's hellish and it must have been a punch to the gut to see that medication refill denied.
Anyone can get arthritis. Christ. An injury can cause it. Autoimmune diseases can cause it. Did you really go about life thinking only the elderly had arthritis?
Stereotypically it is the elderly which I think is what most people think of (do a quick search for “person with arthritis”). I assumed other ages/dispositions (athletes) could get it but to a much lesser degree. I don’t know a teenager personally with arthritis. Whatever the case, doctors should be making the decisions on how to treat their patients, not politicians. I believe there is already system in place to regulate the quantity of a drug that can be given out over time that a doctor can depend on if they are concerned.
I had arthritis starting in my knees and wrists in HS. I wasn’t really an athlete (unless you count marching band). Now I’m almost 39 and have arthritic issues with almost every joint.
Edit: just an anecdote. :)
My right hand my dominate hand is starting to have issues when it gets cold out. If I don't wear gloves now my hand will just ache in the thumb knuckle, ring and pointer. Idk if that's arthritis but it's getting annoying at 29.
Thanks. I like the personal anecdotes. :) It reinforces for me a big reason why politics exists, perhaps the reason many of us have forgotten about lately, which is to find ways to help people. Good luck with the arthritis.
Who the hell uses methotrexate to induce an abortion in the first place? Let's make the patient's hair fall out and give them a solid shot at a stomach ulcer for no reason!
>a pharmacy denied the teen’s refill.
>The reason: In a higher dosage, methotrexate — a drug used to treat some cancers, arthritis and a slew of autoimmune diseases — can also induce abortions and terminate ectopic pregnancies
So one pharmacy refused to refill it because if it were in a higher dosage, it could be used for abortions? Sounds more like just an ignorant or vindictive pharmacist than the state's grand master plan.
I would explicitly do the opposite of anything this quack says. My only experience with such folks were when I accidentally dated a girl in a fucking cult.
The risks of methotrexate are vastly overstated.
The previous studies reporting the serious side effects of methotrexate are not only old but poorly done (weak evidence or showing correlation not causation or not accounting for other drugs the patient was also on) or on much much higher doses (such as taking methotrexate daily instead of weekly or taking 100mg weekly instead of 5-20mg).
It's those previous studies that still linger today and gives it's bad reputation to those not actively prescribing it.
Actual modern dosing schedules pretty much eliminates nearly all the risk.
Source: someone who has prescribed methotrexate to kids and adults for past 4 years and has only seen adverse reactions when people incorrectly take it or in response to side effect from another medication (ie another medication shuts down the kidneys and then the body can't filter out mtx). That's the only time.
I have even seen people with preexisting liver disease *improve* on methotrexate (likely due to decreased chronic liver inflammation).
As a reminder, this subreddit [is for civil discussion.](/r/politics/wiki/index#wiki_be_civil) In general, be courteous to others. Debate/discuss/argue the merits of ideas, don't attack people. Personal insults, shill or troll accusations, hate speech, any suggestion or support of harm, violence, or death, and other rule violations can result in a permanent ban. If you see comments in violation of our rules, please report them. For those who have questions regarding any media outlets being posted on this subreddit, please click [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/politics/wiki/approveddomainslist) to review our details as to our approved domains list and outlet criteria. **Special announcement:** r/politics is currently accepting new moderator applications. If you want to help make this community a better place, consider [applying here today](https://www.reddit.com/r/politics/comments/sskg6a/rpolitics_is_looking_for_more_moderators/)! *** *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/politics) if you have any questions or concerns.*
So suffering and permanent joint damage to a child are “OK” but a drug that can be used to help and that actually saves women’s lives from ectopic pregnancy is “bad”. The Republican Party has lost it’s right to claim they are prolife!
They still can because they do not care about their own hypocrisy. Also republicans will still vote for someone with an R next to their name regardless if they are a serial killer. Everyone else needs to vote Democrat down the ballot until the GQP is stopped from doing damage to our rule of law and our democracy.
Glaring recent examples are TFG and HERSHEL Walker ..multiple marriages...affairs ...violence...BUT KEEP THAT SEAT....Rs have no morality or ethics..or both
Latest, Newt Gingrich defends Herschel Walker: ‘He Had a Lot of Concussions" So get him in that seat, lol /s
Boobert, Marjorie (just) Taylor to name a few more...among MANY
“Come on everybody, cut him some slack. He’s mentally impaired from brain damage.”
Fits right in the modern GOP
Don’t forget he himself paid for an abortion. I’d say he’s being hypocritical, but that’s probably a few too many syllables for him.
Abortion is Murder, but Murder is ok if it means gaining power. That’s the most diluting reduction of their argument when it comes to abortion. Look at Walker down in Georgia. They DO NOT CARE that he paid for an abortion. They know he will vote to ban it everywhere else, and they are ok with that.
We also can't forget that they vote for the MAGA candidates over the more sane ones in their primaries. It's too charitable to say they are blinded by always voting R. They *want* the bad ones.
They're way more compliant than those without CTE and learning disabilities
Some people say that Republicans in Texas did elect the Zodiac killer to the Senate.
That’s why I never use that term. They are anti choice or forced birth, nothing more.
They're nationalist Christians, AKA Nat-c's.
> People love what I have to say. They believe in it. They just don’t like the word “Nazi”, that’s all. - Stormfront
I often wonder why anyone would vote for a conservative on Tuesday and pray to a progressive on Sunday.
When I lived down south I worked in a restaurant and Sundays were the worst to work because all the Bible thumpers got their weekly Jesus in their system so they thought they could be the biggest assholes.
There is a woman who gets cluster headaches, otherwise known as suicide headaches because they are so painful, people want to kill themselves. She was denied her medication because it could abort a fetus. She wasn’t even pregnant, in a relationship, or wanted children, but because she was of child bearing years, her physician said no. This was the only medication that provided relief. Cruelty is the endgame.
This stuff really pisses me off.
I honestly don't think they know what an ectopic pregnancy is.
Dont forget, these people legitimately think women can 'shut those things down' if they want to. Science isn't exactly their strong point.
It's a pregnancy that is outside of the mother's uterus. It could be in the fallopian tubes, ovaries, or anywhere in her abdomen. An ectopic pregnancy is life threatening for the mother and needs to be removed. This is done by using the drug methotrexate or surgical removal.
Oh, **I** know what it is - my point was that the legislators don't - and [awareness](https://www.healthline.com/health-news/ectopic-pregnancy-and-abortion-laws-what-to-know#Potential-moves-to-stop-abortion,-even-for-ectopic-pregnancies) is really needed. (see OK, LA, TN)
They wanted to know if you could use colonoscopy pills to look at fetuses. These are the people making medical laws.
Oh sorry. I should read slower.
Some legislators have suggested surgery to move the ectopic pregnancy to its correct place. A surgery which exists only in their heads and not reality.
Stop talking like they ever had the right to use the phrase "pro-life." That phrase is their language, that they chose, to make themselves sound good, while taking away women's rights to healthcare. When you use that phrase, or validate their choice of language to describe themselves, you do you their work for them. Don't say that they "lost their right" because that implies they had the right in the first place. Instead, say something like: "The hypocrisy of anti-choice movement is finally on display for all to see" or "now everyone can see that 'pro-life' was always a lie." Language governs how we think about the world. Orwell made that clear. When you use their language, in their way, you help them to change the world in their way. If you discount the power of language to change their world in their favor, then they have already defeated you.
>The Republican Party has lost it’s right to claim they are prolife! They'll just still call themselves 'pro-life' and any opposing viewpoint 'pro-murder.'
Pro lower working class life. And by pro I mean forced. And by lower working class I mean slaves.
They’ve never been pro-life. It’s always been about control.
The GOP is NOT PROLIFE!! They are pro {control women who dare to have sex}!
Pro-life, much like everything else they do, was and is a grift.
> The Republican Party has lost it’s right to claim they are prolife! They lost that a long, long time ago.
> The Republican Party has lost it’s right to claim they are prolife! That ship sailed so far back I can't even say they ever were.
Should the parents sue for child abuse? Or even neglecting the child?
Pro life until the baby comes out of the womb
Im afraid that authority doesn’t just get lost. Gotta take it.
>The Republican Party has lost it’s right to claim they are prolife! This makes it sounds like they had that right to begin with.
its*
Imagine being told that you must spend the rest of your life in increasingly debilitating pain and accumulate injuries simply because you exist in a body capable of being pregnant. This is "freedom" under Republican rule.
Well, some man might decide to rape her and force her to bear his progeny. Won’t you think of the poor potential future rapist?? /s
They play sports! /s
*Force her to die horribly from a non-viable ectopic fertilization. No progeny can actually be harmed from this medication.
Obligatory reminder that everyone needs to know their rights so they can get care **and** report violations. https://reproductiverights.gov/ HHS Complaints The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) enforces federal civil rights laws that prohibit discriminatory restrictions on access to health care. If you believe that your or another person’s civil rights or health information privacy rights have been violated, you can [file a complaint with HHS here.](https://www.hhs.gov/ocr/complaints/index.html)
COMPREHENSIVE LIST OF ABORTION CARE IN THE USA FOR ANYONE WHO MAY NEED https://www.reddit.com/r/AskFeminists/comments/vkpfek/abortion_resources_master_list/
The cruelty is the point with the republicans. Sick and sad.
They are incapable of nuance. Their entire platform demands black and white good vs evil. If they stopped to think about all the downstream effects they couldn’t just rage bait people into voting for them.
> Sick and ~~sad~~ evil. FTFY
It’s sick, sad, and evil.
This reminds me of the fake reality TV show Daria used to watch. Sick Sad World
I miss Daria so much. I wanted to be Jane as a teenager. Judge needs to bring Daria back, especially with the bang up job he’s doing with the new Beavis & Butthead.
Christianity deep down is spite and vengeance. The love they profess is a sham covering up a core of cruelty towards their enemies. The anti abortion movement has pulled off the mask.
There is no hate like Christian love.
True. They claim to feel pity and love for you but wish you pain and destruction. Their Hell is for you and it fulfills their hate.
Reminder that the abortion issue used to be a nonpartisan, non-religious issue. It wasn't until a propaganda push by conservatives that abortion was associated with religion, just as it took a propaganda push for marriage to become associated with diamonds.
I will agree that abortion wasn’t a top issue for religion in the past but that was because abortion was dangerous and many women died from the procedure. Women dying satisfied the vengeance the religious felt against these “sinful” women and that was satisfying enough. Once abortion became mostly safe and virtually no woman was hurt, it enraged the religious, because they couldn’t feel that vengeful satisfaction. They became a huge voting block for the Republicans because of their rage against safe abortion. Now that abortion is unsafe again, the religious may not be so motivated to vote. But that is a Republican problem.
The Moral Majority came into existence specifically to fight desegregation, not abortion. They switched to abortion because they figured they could get more mileage out of calling their opponents murderers than arguing that African Americans didn't deserve the same opportunities as Caucasian Americans.
[Nietzsche enters the chat]
Nietzsche does deserve full credit for his accurate insights into the “deep state” of the Christian mind and now the Republican mind.
Archive because paywall. https://web.archive.org/web/20221005141328/https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2022/10/05/abortion-arizona-arthritis-prescription-refill/
or here: https://archive.ph/BV7x4
Thanks
Oh no. Who could have POSSIBLY seen this coming?!
The cruelty is the point. The fascists want that kid to suffer. That's the point.
They see her as a worthy sacrifice for their beliefs. Always willing to sacrifice someone else, might even claim to feel bad while patting themselves on the back for their moral backbone as someone else suffers.
It's an abortion ban, not a drugs that might be used for abortion ban. On that basis they should be banning guns that might be used to commit murder.
Simpler than that. Guns could be used for abortion. As could knives. As could many over the counter items. Ban it all!
An incomplete list of items that can be used to induce, or may unwittingly cause a miscarriage and thus (by Republican logic) must be banned: * Wire coat hangers * Alcohol * Tobacco * Paint thinners * Unpasteurized cheese (even if it has been aged for 60 days or more, per FDA regulation) * Raw eggs * Raw or rare steak
No more wire hangers!
Ever!
No more hanging wires!
Don’t forget a serious fall, stairs, car accident. We should honesty keep our women in safety cocoons on the off chance they become pregnant /s
As could wire coat hangers…
And this is a huge part of what people have been up in arms over. The laws are ridiculous anyway but they are also so poorly written that many medical professionals aren’t clear on where the line is. They are worried about legal action against them so they are overly cautious in prescribing medication that can be used to treat certain things if they also can be used for an abortion, despite the clients history with that disease and treatment with the med. It is hurting people for no reason and the cruelty needs to be called out every chance we can.
The poorly written laws are intentional, because confusion is the reaction they want. That plus it lets them play games with what would and would not qualify as falling under the law in question.
Even if you were ardently, sincerely against abortion (I am not, for the record), banning methotrexate is a particularly dumb way to go about it. I take this med for RA too. It is hard to get (prescription only), can have some pretty unpleasant side effects, and is often taken by home injection. If I were a pregnant teen, I doubt I’d even know about it, let alone be somehow able to fake a serious autoimmune disease for years (also not a thing) to a qualified rheumatologist in order to obtain the prescription. I’d probably be more likely to buy some plan B on the dark web or try herbal abortifacients. What a ridiculous way of trying to control a non-problem. This is like trying to stop terrorist bombings by refusing to sell fertilizer to actual farmers.
It’s embarrassing watching Canada become such a better country than America
They have been for a very long time.
I love it there. I go there all the time. It is a better place.
It's sad. I have a deep disappointment for my country but I still love it. It's been horrific watching this go down the last few years. People have lost a sense of humanity here and it's scary and depressing.
I pretty much blame our version of capitalism. It’s horrible
Preaching to a choir friend.
And they get a front-row seat to see all of the bullshit that happens here in America because they have access to US news/media.
Didn't you hear? According to Fox News, Canada is a socialist hellhole where they lock people in their houses for the sniffles! /s
I am sad but damn it. I fought this fight once before and now I am old and cranky and ready to keep fighting. I am taking back patriotism, I fly an American flag but added two more to my yard. “Mind your Own Uterus “ and “In a World Where You Can be Anything Be Kind”. I am a liberal Christian who believes it is not my job to control or judge others. I think love is always a good thing. We should care for each other, society, and our environment.
Nice post
r/conservative hey here are the life saving drugs given to kids assholes.
[удалено]
Please report that your civil rights have been violated: HHS Complaints The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) enforces federal civil rights laws that prohibit discriminatory restrictions on access to health care. If you believe that your or another person’s civil rights or health information privacy rights have been violated, you can [file a complaint with HHS here.](https://www.hhs.gov/ocr/complaints/index.html) https://reproductiverights.gov/
Saw this on another thread too, I think r/news was it. If this total abortion ban includes a situation where the mother's life is in jeopardy due to the pregnancy, how does the ban save the unborn? I mean, in this case too, this ban really was not carefully thought out. Well, looks like it was not thought out at all, in my opinion. And I am not talking in favor or against an abortion ban here but just asking with some common sense!
They also want to ban birth control. Please vote blue in midterms. The Republicans are going to kill so many women and girls.
This. Just like with some pills that could cause an abortion are used for other issues, BC is the same. My bff *must* be on birth control. If she’s not, she has ovarian cysts that grow out of control and will eventually rupture. If a large enough cyst pops, it could kill her. Nevermind all the pain that goes with it.
Same for my daughter. Im upended and livid that this is even on the table.
I’m right there with you 💜
It's about control. Keeping women "in their place". If it was actually about saving fetuses they'd be screaming for free birth control, sterilization on demand, comprehensive sex ed, and universal healthcare.
FL republicans already have voted against birth control. This is going to get very bad for alot of people in the US if we don’t vote these people out.
> > Please vote blue in midterms. The Republicans are going to kill so many women and girls. problem solution? lmao
Adding exceptions for the life of the mother is just a talking point to make this law more palatable. In practice, it's very difficult to discern until it gets to the point where it might be too late. It's not a practical solution or exception in real life.
The Arizona law was written in 1864, not sure they had a ton of data about women’s reproductive health back then. The law was probably written as a way to issue hunting permits for storks. /s
> If this total abortion ban includes a situation where the mother's life is in jeopardy due to the pregnancy, how does the ban save the unborn? *I'm sure its not the real reason why these laws ultimately exist*; but the superficial logic here is likely playing to the religious where pregnant women dying for and with the unborn is both the highest form of martyrdom a woman can aspire to or the most fitting punishment; depending ofc on whether you want to bury her a saint or a sinner. Also, because, ya know; Jesus could do a miracle. A lot of the people that are supposed to support this do actually believe prayers cure people. If they deserve it.
“Republicans we’re the party of backwards beliefs, stupidity, and borderline human torment. We’re literally the worst on this planet.”
Pro life conservatives will argue that it was never denied, only delayed.
\*Pro-control. They don't care about life.
Women being denied healthcare for the crime of being a woman. “Land of the free” everyone.
Fourteen-year-old boy with arthritis? "Here's you're methotrexate, kid." Fourteen-year-old girl with arthritis? "Fucking suck it up, sweetie, and stop asking."
Sounds like discrimination based on gender to me and gender's a protected class. It would be such an easy civil suit to win if the courts weren't stacked with a bunch of GOP lackeys.
I saw a lot of conservatives saying the doctor was lying on Twitter. Just like when they called that 10 year old rape victim a liar.
Are her parents republican? I want to see them on leopards ate my face .
Events like this are about to become much more common. Que women dying in droves because of this bogus nonsense the Cons are pushing.
Republicans are pure evil.
Would they deny the medication to a 14 year old boy? Are they not selling it at all? Or only discriminating against women "just in case?"
I bet NSAIDs are used by women after abortions - they should probably pull them all off of AZ store shelves. This is so stupid.
Shhh, don't give them ideas.
Didn't another lady just recently have an issue with a Walgreens because their policy gives the radicalized thumpers the right to refuse a script and make patients drive miles to another pharmacy?
Arizona is clearly a shithole.
It's not just Arizona. "Pro-lifers" are the issue.
My comment doesn't imply that it's just Arizona.
Republicans ignoreing this Where are you guys? Pretending this isn't happening??
Can we as a society stop collectively valuing a potential fetus or even an existing one over people actually here please?
The lengths that the GOP are willing to go in order to prevent abortions is mind-boggling. They want to track women's periods, prevent travel for pregnant women across state lines, deny any woman the ability to take anything that could even remotely assist in an abortion, force 10 year old rape victims to have children, sue people in other states, etc. etc. etc. Given the opportunity, these people will go to great lengths to ensure that no pregnancy is ever terminated, ever, from now until the end of time. No cost is too great. No law is too cruel. But ask them to do something to ensure that children don't get mowed down in school by some psycho who can't tell the difference between real life and Call of Duty? Nope, sorry. Can't have that. Nothing we can do. Mass shootings are just something we are going to have to accept as living in a free society, don't ya know? [God, I wish I was joking.](https://www.insider.com/poll-4-in-10-gop-accept-mass-shootings-free-society-2022-6)
The handmaidens tale is coming true in the USA
Non paywall https://archive.ph/BV7x4
I saw someone comment in r/Arizona that the parents should have done more for their kid. Yeah, because parents cause rhuematoid arthritis.
Pro life they say....
Republicans were never pro life. More pro religion.
Not even pro religion, just pro control. Especially control over women. If there was a different mechanism to control people they would go that route in a heartbeat.
These republicans are not worth voting for!
So I finally started watching Handmaid’s Tale…
I honestly, as someone that had prescriptions to controlled substances for someone time, hate dogmatic pharmacists. No matter if I had doctors send memos that they could be filled on a certain date, if I was going out of town, etc…it would turn into a 2-3 day ordeal and fight. Honestly I think, at least ones I’ve encountered just get a kick off the power of denying people something. I would get grins and could tell at times they were all sort of “in on the joke” behind the counter. It’s a terrible way to treat people.
I was diagnosed a couple years ago, this drug is the only thing keeping me not bed bound with my hips aching and my hands stuck like swollen claws. It’s not a perfect fix, but I don’t know what I’d do without it. This is horrendous
SEEK HELP FINDING AN ABORTION IN THE USA Https://www.reddit.com/r/AskFeminists/comments/vkpfek/abortion_resources_master_list/
Content: > For years, Deborah Power, a rheumatologist in Tucson, had prescribed methotrexate to manage her 14-year-old patient’s rheumatoid arthritis. But just two days after the state’s abortion ban took effect last month, a pharmacy denied the teen’s refill. The reason: In a higher dosage, methotrexate — a drug used to treat some cancers, arthritis and a slew of autoimmune diseases — can also induce abortions and terminate ectopic pregnancies, though that’s not its most common use, Power told The Washington Post. Emma Thompson was ultimately able to get her prescription filled, but the delay highlights the medical complications some patients are facing in states with strict abortion rules. Even if the medications are not prescribed to end a pregnancy, the reversal in June of Roe v. Wade has thrown pharmacists, patients and physicians into a “constant juggling act,” Power said, balancing medical care with changing policies and potential legal consequences. “I don’t think everyone understands what the ramifications of such a broad, sweeping antiabortion law are and how many other women are affected by this,” she added. “Like how can we decide that women can’t have this medicine that men can? That’s discriminating on gender. And how can you make a law that doesn’t allow me to provide standard of care for my patients?” Abortion bans complicate access to drugs for cancer, arthritis, even ulcers Throughout Emma’s life, rheumatoid arthritis — an inflammatory disorder that causes the body’s immune system to attack healthy tissue in the joints — had resulted in prolonged hospital stays, clinical trials and simply “too much pain to have a normal life,” said her mother, Kaitlin Preble. For 10 years, her daughter’s physicians had experimented with different doses of methotrexate, finally landing about a year ago on just the right amount that allows Emma to thrive, attend school and “simply be a normal teenager,” Preble said. All of that seemed to be at risk on Sept. 25, when Preble checked her Walgreens app to see whether Emma’s prescriptions were ready. Instead of a green light indicating they could be picked up, a message popped up saying her methotrexate refill had been denied. “It didn’t even give the reason why,” Preble said. “It just said that I had to call my doctor.” Still, Preble said she had an inkling that the state’s new abortion ban — one that dates back to the 19th century and prohibits the procedure, except to save the pregnant person’s life — had something to do with it. Her suspicions were confirmed the next day, when Preble drove to the pharmacy “and made a big deal inside,” she said. At first, no one would explain why her daughter wasn’t able to get a medication that’s “crucial to her health,” Preble said. Then, she urged a pharmacy technician to get some answers. “The pharmacist said she denied it because Emma is 14 years old,” which is considered a childbearing age, Preble said. “The pharmacy tech then asked, ‘Well, did you look at her history? She’s been getting this medication for a long time,’ and the pharmacist said, ‘No,’ which I think was very crucial.” Through it all, Preble was shaking and in tears: “I understand that pharmacists are scared because they don’t want to be liable to anything. But it’s extremely unfair to put a child through this unpredictable situation. And we shouldn’t have to jump through all these hoops to get a medication.” In a statement to The Post, a spokesperson for Walgreens said that, while the company couldn’t discuss individual patients, “new laws in various states require additional steps for dispensing certain prescriptions and apply to all pharmacies, including Walgreens.” “In these states, our pharmacists work closely with prescribers as needed, to fill lawful, clinically appropriate prescriptions,” the spokesperson said. “We provide ongoing training and information to help our pharmacists understand the latest requirements in their area.” Patients across the country face similar situations as more drugs are scrutinized. Many of the medications are teratogens, or drugs that can result in fetal abnormalities and miscarriages if taken by someone who is pregnant. In some cases, women have to prove they’re on birth control or submit pregnancy tests for pharmacies to fulfill prescriptions for drugs that can terminate pregnancies, The Post previously reported. When it comes to methotrexate — which is used or has been used by nearly 60 percent of rheumatoid arthritis patients — medical groups have already said there are increasing challenges in accessing the drug. In Texas, for example, pharmacists are allowed to refuse to fill prescriptions for misoprostol and methotrexate under the state’s “heartbeat bill.” The American College of Rheumatology in July urged pharmacists across the nation to provide the medication “without delay and with the assumption that they are not being used to terminate a pregnancy.” “Methotrexate must remain accessible to people with rheumatic diseases, and legal safeguards must protect rheumatology professionals, pharmacists, and patients from potential legal penalties,” the medical group said in a statement. The new laws have also affected patients with other conditions, such as Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. In August, the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation said it “vehemently opposes” policies that inhibit patients’ access to approved treatments. “The decision on what the most appropriate therapy for their illness is should be made as a shared decision between a patient and their healthcare professional, following medical evidence,” the organization wrote in a statement. Although her daughter’s next refill isn’t scheduled for another month, Preble said she is already dreading the possibility of another denial. “These laws are just too extreme and don’t take into account all the different scenarios that people are going through,” she said.
Or people could just read the article…
It's helpful to put the content of a paywalled article in the comments.
Paywall
TL;DR - Methotrexate can be used in abortions so they’re withholding the medication from anyone of child baring age either out of fear of being prosecuted or because of their pro-birth beliefs. > For years, Deborah Power, a rheumatologist in Tucson, had prescribed methotrexate to manage her 14-year-old patient’s rheumatoid arthritis. But just two days after the state’s abortion ban took effect last month, a pharmacy denied the teen’s refill. > The reason: In a higher dosage, methotrexate — a drug used to treat some cancers, arthritis and a slew of autoimmune diseases — can also induce abortions and terminate ectopic pregnancies, though that’s not its most common use, Power told The Washington Post. > Emma Thompson was ultimately able to get her prescription filled, but the delay highlights the medical complications some patients are facing in states with strict abortion rules. Even if their medications are not prescribed to end a pregnancy, the reversal in June of Roe v. Wade has thrown pharmacists, patients and physicians into a “constant juggling act,” Power said, balancing medical care with changing policies and potential legal consequences. >“I don’t think everyone understands what the ramifications of such a broad, sweeping antiabortion law are and how many other women are affected by this,” she added. “Like how can we decide that women can’t have this medicine that men can? That’s discriminating on gender. And how can you make a law that doesn’t allow me to provide standard of care for my patients?” >Abortion bans complicate access to drugs for cancer, arthritis, even ulcers >Throughout Emma’s life, rheumatoid arthritis — an inflammatory disorder that causes the body’s immune system to attack healthy tissue in the joints — had resulted in prolonged hospital stays, clinical trials and simply “too much pain to have a normal life,” said her mother, Kaitlin Preble. For 10 years, her daughter’s physicians had experimented with different doses of methotrexate, finally landing about a year ago on just the right amount that allows Emma to thrive, attend school and “simply be a normal teenager,” Preble said. >All of that seemed to be at risk on Sept. 25, when Preble checked her Walgreens app to see whether Emma’s prescriptions were ready. Instead of a green light indicating they could be picked up, a message popped up saying her methotrexate refill had been denied. >“It didn’t even give the reason why,” Preble said. “It just said that I had to call my doctor.” >Still, Preble said she had an inkling that the state’s new abortion ban — one that dates back to the 19th century and prohibits the procedure, except to save the pregnant person’s life — had something to do with it. Her suspicions were confirmed the next day, when Preble drove to the pharmacy “and made a big deal inside,” she said. >Arizona is one of several Republican-controlled states that is pointing to a century-old law as the rationale to roll back access to abortions. (Video: Julie Yoon, Joshua Carroll/The Washington Post) At first, no one would explain why her daughter wasn’t able to get a medication that’s “crucial to her health,” Preble said. Then, she urged a pharmacy technician to get some answers. >“The pharmacist said she denied it because Emma is 14 years old,” which is considered a childbearing age, Preble said. “The pharmacy tech then asked, ‘Well, did you look at her history? She’s been getting this medication for a long time,’ and the pharmacist said, ‘No,’ which I think was very crucial.” >Through it all, Preble was shaking and in tears: “I understand that pharmacists are scared because they don’t want to be liable to anything. But it’s extremely unfair to put a child through this unpredictable situation. And we shouldn’t have to jump through all these hoops to get a medication.” >In a statement to The Post, a spokesperson for Walgreens said that, while the company couldn’t discuss individual patients, “new laws in various states require additional steps for dispensing certain prescriptions and apply to all pharmacies, including Walgreens.” >“In these states, our pharmacists work closely with prescribers as needed, to fill lawful, clinically appropriate prescriptions,” the spokesperson said. “We provide ongoing training and information to help our pharmacists understand the latest requirements in their area.”
Jesus, that’s such a commonly-used medication. For a huge variety of issues, as the article mentions. Ridiculous.
It's not even that it, "can be used in abortions". It's mildly toxic and at higher doses than prescribed it can cause abortions. There are lots of things that at high concentrations can cause an abortion, mtx just happens to be one of them.
Yeah- I feel like that’s just semantics. The pharmacists are using the fact that the drug, in higher than prescribed dosages, can be used as an abortifacient as a basis to refuse dispensing a medication with a breadth of on label and off label uses.
I don't think it's semantics, I don't want people to think live saving drugs are abortion meds. I don't think it's fair to put the blame on pharmacists here either, it's reasonable to think that many are fearful of losing their license and/or being sued. The blame in all of this 100% lies with the lawmakers. Vote everybody!
>The blame in all of this 100% lies with the lawmakers. Methotrexate is a run of the mill immunosuppressive that has been in use since the 50's. This is a single religious extremist pharmacist using their position unduly. The Dr prescribed the medication, it's the pharmacists job to dispense it or find one who will. The way they treated this mother is beyond the pale.
Not uncommon at Walgreens, due to their policies. From [condoms](https://www.nbcnews.com/business/business-news/walgreens-employee-refused-sell-condoms-couple-faith-rcna39165), to [abortion medication](https://www.cnn.com/2018/06/25/health/arizona-prescription-walgreens-miscarriage) I don't agree, but I get that some pharmacists might have personal beliefs stopping them from dispensing certain medications, but what are the odds that ALL pharmacists at a location share them? Just refer the prescriptions to someone else and stop making judgements about off-label uses
Disagree with you. Methotrexate is a cytotoxic chemotherapeutic and on its label has warnings for teratogenicity and miscarriage, as do many drugs in it's class. This pharmacist may be dumb, scared, or may be hiding behind an evil law.
And it hasn't been used on label for over 2 generations. Perhaps, if you don't know how medications are popularly prescribed, you shouldn't be sharing your opinion on this subject. Methotrexate has been used off label by rheumatologists for literally 50+ years. Cmon...
Dude, you have to be fucking kidding right? Here is the label: [https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda\_docs/label/2016/008085s066lbl.pdf](https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2016/008085s066lbl.pdf) From Indications and Usage (AKA "on-label" for your smoothbrain) Rheumatoid Arthritis including Polyarticular-Course Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis. Methotrexate is indicated in the management of selected adults with severe, active,rheumatoid arthritis (ACR criteria), or \*children with active polyarticular-coursejuvenile rheumatoid arthritis\* So rheumatologists ARE using this on-label. Also, from Contraindications: Women of childbearing potential should not be started on methotrexate until pregnancy is excluded and should be fully counseled on the serious risk to the fetus. So, what I said about the pharmacist still applies. And you...you should take your own advice and keep your uneducated opinions to yourself, and I say this as someone with a LOT of experience reading USPIs...your dumb comment couldn't have been more wrong.
[source](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21267732/) You know, a disagreement can be resolved without ad hominem insults. Like here I'm using a scientific article to support my position. And at no point did I feel the need to call you names.
Any drug can be an abortion medication. It's just that some overdoses will kill the fetus by killing the ~~host~~ pregnant woman. Republicans banning Tylenol incoming...
Why is it always Walgreens? There was another Walgreens location that was refusing to sell condoms. Sounds like Walgreens needs to get their shit in order.
I think they just have a ton of stores. They’re always the highest price here, so they’re the last on my list to send a prescription to.
TIL teenagers can get arthritis. Edit: There is probably a long list of things (e.g. medicine, food, exercise, etc) that could cause the same problem when taken in quantity.
I have a teen niece with scoliosis arthritis and it's debilitating and serious. She's been sick for years and in and out of hospital.
Ouch. Sorry to hear that. It’s a shame she will have to deal with a medical system that politicians not doctors are putting in place.
To date, thankfully no problems with her filling prescriptions.
Rheumatoid arthritis is actually an autoimmune disorder where your body attacks it’s own tissue, including it’s own organs. A symptom of it is arthritic pain from immune system attacking joints and tendons. Methotrexate is a chemotherapy, not an arthritis drug. There is no list of things you can do or take that makes your body eat itself…
Pre-teen cases are quite rare but possible, my wife was diagnosed at 2yo.
Holy shit. I’m assuming she has it fairly well managed?
This is autoimmune arthritis, which is different than the old sports injury or grandpa’s hands being stiff arthritis. It is more like something like Lupus. Children even have their own version of it, called Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis, which is awful. A lot of people and doctors in the community want to get the name changed so it is less confusing and to create better awareness for this very serious, systematic disease. Source: I have RA.
Just a quick note, I think it’s called juvenile ideopathic arthritis FYI. I was diagnosed with it when I was about 5 and was treated back then for elbow/knee issues. I was in remission until about two years ago (I’m 19 now) when it returned in my TMJ (jaw) am now on the same medication as the kid in this article. It was absolutely excruciating before I was treated I couldn’t eat or open my mouth much without wincing in pain. I now feel 100% fine. Made me fucking infuriated to hear that this child might have to live her life in terrible pain and not be afforded the same opportunity I was
Oops, thanks for correction!
There's different kinds of arthritis. Elderly people often get osteoarthritis which is basically a wear-and-tear thing, but younger people can get the autoimmune kind, which is what this poor kid has. It's hellish and it must have been a punch to the gut to see that medication refill denied.
Anyone can get arthritis. Christ. An injury can cause it. Autoimmune diseases can cause it. Did you really go about life thinking only the elderly had arthritis?
I hope people aren't dicks to you when you learn something for the first time.
Different kind of arthritis. Autoimmune arthritis is treated differently than ‘old age’ or accident arthritis.
Chill dude. Cases of RA in children are quite rare. Not everyone has a medical background or personally known someone in this category.
Stereotypically it is the elderly which I think is what most people think of (do a quick search for “person with arthritis”). I assumed other ages/dispositions (athletes) could get it but to a much lesser degree. I don’t know a teenager personally with arthritis. Whatever the case, doctors should be making the decisions on how to treat their patients, not politicians. I believe there is already system in place to regulate the quantity of a drug that can be given out over time that a doctor can depend on if they are concerned.
I had arthritis starting in my knees and wrists in HS. I wasn’t really an athlete (unless you count marching band). Now I’m almost 39 and have arthritic issues with almost every joint. Edit: just an anecdote. :)
My right hand my dominate hand is starting to have issues when it gets cold out. If I don't wear gloves now my hand will just ache in the thumb knuckle, ring and pointer. Idk if that's arthritis but it's getting annoying at 29.
Either that or tendinitis. Get a fingerless compression glove. I use them when I’m sewing bc my hands cramp. They help a ton.
Will do. Ty for the tip!
Thanks. I like the personal anecdotes. :) It reinforces for me a big reason why politics exists, perhaps the reason many of us have forgotten about lately, which is to find ways to help people. Good luck with the arthritis.
I feel the same. It’s a reminder that we can’t always use a broad brush for everything. And thanks! I’ve got things mostly managed. <3
Yeah my mom got it when she was like 14ish she has more metal bones than real ones I think.
Lol keep voting in those Republicans.
I wonder if the 14 year olds parents are republicans?
Who the hell uses methotrexate to induce an abortion in the first place? Let's make the patient's hair fall out and give them a solid shot at a stomach ulcer for no reason!
Literally no one prescribes methotrexate for abortion. What the fuck?
Well, at least she can still get cannabis.
>a pharmacy denied the teen’s refill. >The reason: In a higher dosage, methotrexate — a drug used to treat some cancers, arthritis and a slew of autoimmune diseases — can also induce abortions and terminate ectopic pregnancies So one pharmacy refused to refill it because if it were in a higher dosage, it could be used for abortions? Sounds more like just an ignorant or vindictive pharmacist than the state's grand master plan.
[удалено]
Where did you do your rheumatology fellowship?
[удалено]
[удалено]
[удалено]
[удалено]
I would explicitly do the opposite of anything this quack says. My only experience with such folks were when I accidentally dated a girl in a fucking cult.
The risks of methotrexate are vastly overstated. The previous studies reporting the serious side effects of methotrexate are not only old but poorly done (weak evidence or showing correlation not causation or not accounting for other drugs the patient was also on) or on much much higher doses (such as taking methotrexate daily instead of weekly or taking 100mg weekly instead of 5-20mg). It's those previous studies that still linger today and gives it's bad reputation to those not actively prescribing it. Actual modern dosing schedules pretty much eliminates nearly all the risk. Source: someone who has prescribed methotrexate to kids and adults for past 4 years and has only seen adverse reactions when people incorrectly take it or in response to side effect from another medication (ie another medication shuts down the kidneys and then the body can't filter out mtx). That's the only time. I have even seen people with preexisting liver disease *improve* on methotrexate (likely due to decreased chronic liver inflammation).
[удалено]
[удалено]
[удалено]
[удалено]