Abortion: South Korea to approve mifepristone

South Korea plans to approve its first abortion pill for use up to nine weeks into pregnancy. Seven years ago, the Constitutional Court of the socially conservative nation abolished an abortion ban that had been in place for almost as long as the country itself. Mifepristone will be used in combination with misoprostol, with its introduction planned for the first quarter of 2027. The Ministries of Gender Equality and Family, Health and Welfare, and Food and Drug Safety announced this at a press conference. Minister of Gender Equality and Family Won Min-Kyong stated that gaps in the system had prevented women from fully exercising their right to safe access to healthcare. Mifepristone, also known as RU-486, terminates pregnancy by blocking the hormone progesterone.