Most Insurers Agree to Cover Abortion Pill

Health insurers have generally agreed to cover the newly approved RU-486 abortion pill, according to a survey of leading managed care plans. The health insurers, including Aetna, United HealthCare and Cigna, will cover the abortion pill as a standard benefit. PacifiCare Health Systems will leave the decision up to its doctors, because it considers the pill a new method of performing abortions, rather than being a new drug. Humana Inc. and Kaiser Permanente said they are still deciding whether to cover the pill. In keeping with standard abortion coverage, insurers will give employers the choice of whether to offer the benefit to their workers. The pill, Mifeprex, should be available this month. A price has not been set. Often when the Food and Drug Administration approves a new drug, a managed care company then reviews the drug’s benefits before deciding whether to cover it. With Mifeprex, the pill is only dispensed directly from a physician’s office and not through a pharmacy.