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[quote=Anonymous]Chilling..  Chilling that a medical professional organization needs to issue this report.

https://www.the-rheumatologist.org/article/challenges-in-reproductive-health-in-rheumatic-disease/

[quote]In a series of prescient comments, Dr. Talabi encouraged rheumatologists to consider the ways they may be personally and professionally affected by changes to abortion access. One month later, on June 24, the U.S. Supreme Court voted to overrule Roe v. Wade in the Dobbs v. Jackson decision, eliminating the constitutional right to abortion. Dr. Talabi highlighted instances in which elective termination may be medically important for a patient, especially in our population of patients at increased risk of adverse events in pregnancy. Dr. Talabi also discussed the fraught area of teratogenic or abortifacient medications used in rheumatic diseases and legality concerns for rheumatologists as prescribing physicians.

Methotrexate is widely used as a safe medication to treat a variety of rheumatic diseases, but it can also function as an abortifacient. Although mifepristone and misoprostol are the most commonly used medications for medical abortion, methotrexate can also be used in this capacity. Patients are turning to Twitter and Facebook to share their stories of being denied refills of their methotrexate prescription because of legality concerns by their doctor or pharmacy.

The ACR has assembled a task force of medical and policy experts to determine the best course of action to ensure our patients keep access to the treatments they need. In the meantime, the ACR is asking members and patients who have experienced challenges accessing methotrexate to email advocacy@rheumatology.org with details.

This growing problem is also on the radar of rheumatic disease advocacy groups. The Arthritis Foundation ([800]283-7800), the Lupus Foundation of America (access@lupus.org) and Creaky Joints ([845]348-0400), for example, have issued calls for patients to contact them if they are having trouble with access to methotrexate due to these recent legal changes.

In an effort to clarify legality concerns among physicians, the Department of Health & Human Services has issued guidance on the disclosure of information related to reproductive healthcare. It makes clear that physicians are not required to disclose private medical information to third parties and provides patients with tips on protecting private health information on personal cell phones and tablets. The AMA has identified and recommended additional actions to increase transparency on what apps are doing with medical information. Technology companies are taking their own actions.

On July 1, tech giant Google announced steps it is taking to help protect privacy, stating: “Some of the places people visit—including medical facilities like counseling centers, domestic violence shelters, abortion clinics, fertility centers, addiction treatment facilities, weight loss clinics, cosmetic surgery clinics, and others—can be particularly personal. Today, we’re announcing that if our systems identify that someone has visited one of these places, we will delete these entries from Location History soon after they visit. This change will take effect in the coming weeks.”[/quote][/quote]

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