Telehealth service allows New Zealand women to have abortion consultation over phone

A new telehealth service was launched in New Zealand on Tuesday to allow women in their first 10 weeks of pregnancy to access medication for an early medical abortion over the phone.

"People seeking an abortion will have better access to care from today," Associate Minister of Health Ayesha Verrall said, calling it a "vital service."

It is one of the initiatives after the 2020 abortion law reform in the country.

The free nationwide abortion telehealth service DECIDE will connect callers to a health practitioner over the phone who is expected to help guide someone through the process of an early medical abortion, Verrall said.

If a person wishes to proceed after consulting with the practitioner, they can then choose whether to have the medicines couriered to them or to pick them up from a supporting pharmacy, she said.

"This will significantly improve health care for those who live in rural areas, have concerns about privacy or don't have a medical professional they feel comfortable seeing," she added.

This service will be available 24/7 and complements are already existing in-person services, and the abortion medicine mifepristone becomes available on prescription.