California will not renew its $54 million contract with Walgreens, Governor Gavin Newsom announced Wednesday, two days after he threatened to boycott the pharmacy giant over its decision to stop providing chemical abortion pills in 21 states.
The contract allowed California to produce “specialty pharmacy prescription drugs” that were mainly used in the state’s correctional facilities, Newsom said. The Democratic governor announced he will not renew the contract, which is set to expire in May, and will instead explore other options to maintain the services.
“California will not stand by as corporations cave to extremists and cut off critical access to reproductive care and freedom,” Newsom said in a statement. “California is on track to be the fourth largest economy in the world and we will leverage our market power to defend the right to choose.”
The announcement comes after Walgreens said last week that it would not distribute mifepristone in nearly two dozen states where Republican officials threatened litigation if the company started distributing the drug.
Attorneys general from Missouri, Georgia, Florida, and other red states wrote a letter to Walgreens and CVS noting the dangers of chemical abortions, which are more likely to yield complications in the first trimester than surgical abortions are, according to statistics cited by the state attorneys general. Given the nature of chemical abortion, the complications typically arise when women are at home, rather than with medical help nearby, the letter noted.
“We emphasize that it is our responsibility as State Attorneys General to uphold the law and protect the health, safety, and well-being of women and unborn children in our states,” the attorneys general wrote.
They noted that federal law and several state laws prohibit using the mail to send or receive any drug that will be used for abortion.
Newsom, meanwhile, has firmly positioned himself as a pro-abortion governor. Before the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, he made California a “sanctuary” state for abortion.