AMHERST, Mass. (WWLP) – UMass Amherst plans to offer abortion medication to students on campus starting next fall.
The University already provided some services related to abortion like offering referrals to students linking them to abortion providers in the region. They also offer transportation to the provider and a follow up exam at their health center on campus.
Starting in fall of 2022, the University will skip the middleman and offer the abortion pill directly to students.
In a statement, the University’s Director of Communications told 22News that student demand was a driving force behind this decision.
“The UMass Amherst campus has a longstanding commitment to providing quality, respectful and confidential gynecological and reproductive health services. Currently, a UMass Amherst student seeking a medical abortion pill is referred by our on-campus health clinic to a regional hospital or an affiliated provider. We offer students transportation to and from the appointment to the medical provider, as we do for any student seeking a procedure not offered by the university. We also offer to schedule a follow-up appointment for a gynecological exam at the campus health clinic after the medical abortion pill is taken.
The campus has heard from students that they want access to the medically prescribed drug. Because of the notable distance to providers from the Amherst campus, and because the campus already offers extensive gynecological and reproductive care to students, UMass Amherst plans to offer the medical abortion pill to students on site at our University Health Services clinic in fall 2022.”
University of Massachusetts spokesman Ed Blaguszewski
