California Passes Bill Allowing Anonymous Mailing of Abortion Pills

California has passed Assembly Bill 260, which permits healthcare providers to mail abortion pills to patients anonymously, omitting names of the prescriber, patient, and pharmacist on prescription labels. The bill, awaiting Gov. Gavin Newsom's signature, aims to protect providers and patients from legal actions stemming from abortion bans in other states by shielding identifying information and limiting out-of-state access to records without a court order. This legislation strengthens existing shield laws that protect telehealth providers who prescribe abortion pills to out-of-state patients, helping women in states with restrictive abortion laws access medication safely. The bill reflects growing use of telehealth for abortions, with about a quarter of abortions now provided this way, and it aligns California with other states like New York and Massachusetts that have adopted similar anonymous prescribing measures. The law is expected to have a broad national impact, given that many medication abortion services use California-based pharmacies to dispense and ship pills. Experts note that these protections are increasingly necessary as legal challenges against telehealth abortion providers intensify nationwide.