this post was submitted on 14 Aug 2025
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Aug 14 (Reuters) - Costco Wholesale (COST.O) , said on Thursday it will stop selling abortion pill mifepristone across all its U.S. pharmacy stores, citing low demand.

"Our position at this time not to sell mifepristone, which has not changed, is based on the lack of demand from our members and other patients, who we understand generally have the drug dispensed by their medical providers," Costco said, adding that it will stop the sale at its more than 500 pharmacies.

The decision comes amid campaigns against the pill by religious activist groups, including Inspire Investing and Alliance Defending Freedom.

"Many retailers have become more cautious about taking overt political or social stances after recent controversies triggered boycotts, negative media coverage, and polarized consumer reactions," said Arun Sundaram, senior analyst at CFRA.

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[–] JonsJava@lemmy.world 12 points 6 months ago

This post was reported as "misinformation". The article has since been updated with the following:

(This Aug. 14 story has been corrected to say that Costco will 'not sell' mifepristone instead of 'stop selling' the pill in paragraph 1 and removes reference to 'stopping sale' in paragraph 2)

Because of this, I'm leaving it up, as the poster and the article didn't intend to mislead, and the article has since been corrected.

[–] cheese_greater@lemmy.world 74 points 6 months ago (3 children)
[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 27 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Would love to do the right thing, but...

slaps the spreadsheet that shows company profits

Shareholders come first.

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[–] MisterOwl@lemmy.world 15 points 6 months ago

There are no good companies, only varying levels of evil. Welcome to capitalism.

[–] MerrySkeptic@sh.itjust.works 59 points 6 months ago (2 children)

I read elsewhere that they never sold it. I read the article but it seems to contradict itself. It says Costco "stopped selling" it, but it also quotes Costco as saying "Our position at this time not to sell mifepristone, which has not changed, is based on the lack of demand from our members and other patients, who we understand generally have the drug dispensed by their medical providers," (emphasis mine).

So either Reuters is wrong when it says they stopped selling, or Costco is lying when it says it's position never changed

[–] Ajen@sh.itjust.works 25 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago) (1 children)

The way I read it, if Costco isn't lying then Reuters is lying.

"Our position at this time not to sell mifepristone, which has not changed, is based on the lack of demand from our members and other patients, who we understand generally have the drug dispensed by their medical providers," Costco said, adding that it will stop the sale at its more than 500 pharmacies.

Reuters reported that Costco explicit said they'd stop selling the drug, but apparently chose not to include that part of the quote for some reason.

[–] ImADifferentBird@lemmy.blahaj.zone 13 points 6 months ago (2 children)

Aug 14 (Reuters) - (This Aug. 14 story has been corrected to say that Costco will 'not sell' mifepristone instead of 'stop selling' the pill in paragraph 1 and removes reference to 'stopping sale' in paragraph 2)

Apparently it was Reuters that was lying.

[–] turtlesareneat@discuss.online 3 points 6 months ago (1 children)

It's not lying if you believe it, and then issue a correction when you realize you were wrong.

[–] Ajen@sh.itjust.works 2 points 6 months ago

It's incredibly irresponsible (possibly libelous) for a journalist to claim someone said something without proof. So even if it wasn't a literal lie, it wasn't far off.

[–] SlartyBartFast@sh.itjust.works 2 points 6 months ago

They might have been lying but they still were able to whip up controversy by it. Genius!

[–] Regna@lemmy.world 52 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago) (3 children)

Wtf!? It and misoprostol are also a part of a medicine regime to prevent bleeding stomach ulcers for sufferers of several autoimmune diseases.

[–] _haha_oh_wow_@sh.itjust.works 21 points 6 months ago (1 children)

"Fuck your stupid bleeding stomach!"

-Costco apparently

[–] morphballganon@lemmy.world 14 points 6 months ago (3 children)

They never sold it. Why are you jumping on the hate bandwagon instead of reading the summary?

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[–] godzillabacter@lemmy.world 18 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Mifepristone has no role in the treatment or prevention of ulcers, only misoprostol is used in that fashion.

[–] workerONE@lemmy.world 11 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago)

Idk why someone down voted you, it seems you're right. But Mifepristone is also used to treat Cushing's disease

[–] Tollana1234567@lemmy.today 2 points 6 months ago

they will go after methotrexate soon enough which also used as abortificient.

[–] _haha_oh_wow_@sh.itjust.works 33 points 6 months ago (3 children)
[–] HellsBelle@sh.itjust.works 29 points 6 months ago (1 children)

And liars. Blaming their customer base instead of admitting their fear of Trump is horseshit.

[–] _haha_oh_wow_@sh.itjust.works 3 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago)

Turns out the headline is bullshit and they never sold it to begin with.

[–] morphballganon@lemmy.world 15 points 6 months ago (1 children)

They never sold it.

Do companies have an obligation to start selling a product to avoid being called cowards?

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[–] fishpen0@lemmy.world 5 points 6 months ago (2 children)

They never sold the product. This is Reuters being slimy. The headline and article have been corrected:

Aug 14 (Reuters) - (This Aug. 14 story has been corrected to say that Costco will 'not sell' mifepristone instead of 'stop selling' the pill in paragraph 1 and removes reference to 'stopping sale' in paragraph 2)

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[–] wuffah@lemmy.world 26 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago) (6 children)

Low demand?? Birth control is in low demand??? I’m surprised that Costco doesn’t sell a smaller spoon to make this horseshit a little more palatable.

Nothing sells capitalism as inherently fascist faster than every corporation racing to obey the regime in advance.

[–] callouscomic@lemmy.zip 43 points 6 months ago (2 children)

Earlier this year Costco was in the news effectively telling the Cheeto Nazi administration to get fucked and they reinforced their standing behind their DEI policies.

That's just one example. I don't think they are the capitalist enemy you should focus on. I'm inclined to believe them on this one.

[–] TheLowestStone@lemmy.world 15 points 6 months ago

I'm generally pretty skeptical but this is plausible. The statement mentions that people often get it directly from their medical provider. If you need to see a doctor to get it and the doctor can just give it to you why would you go to the pharmacy instead?

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[–] aesthelete@lemmy.world 9 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago)

They could be right in this case honestly, because there is probably a minuscule fraction of the preppers, large families, and pre-planners that shop at Costco that wouldn't just use some other type of birth control.

Post-conception birth control in general I cannot see being someone's primary method.

It still sucks, but I buy this much more than I buy that Colbert was cancelled for purely financial reasons.

[–] Fedizen@lemmy.world 9 points 6 months ago (2 children)

Its probably a demographic mismatch: how many people with a costco card are under 30 years old?

[–] mic_check_one_two@lemmy.dbzer0.com 10 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Worth noting that you don’t need a Costco card to use their pharmacy. Just tell the front door badge-checker that you’re there for the pharmacy, and they’ll wave you through.

[–] hamFoilHat@lemmy.world 4 points 6 months ago (3 children)

That used to be true but now they scan the Costco card at the pharmacy. Used to be that you could go to the food court as well without a card but they stop that too.

[–] towamo7603@lemmy.world 5 points 6 months ago

They'll ask if you have a card, but don't require it. It's against the law for them to restrict pharmacy purchases in the US. If you were denied service it was probably someone new who didn't know the rules. Ask for a manager next time.

https://customerservice.costco.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/796/~/do-i-need-a-membership-to-purchase-prescription-drugs%3F

[–] hovercat@lemmy.blahaj.zone 2 points 6 months ago

They scan your card to potentially give you a discount in the same way stuff like GoodRx does, but membership isn't a requirement. At one point there were even a few meds that were cheaper with the Costco discount than with my insurance.

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[–] HeyThisIsntTheYMCA@lemmy.world 4 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago)

i've had one my entire adult life. the gas paid for the membership alone. worked as a courier from 18-21

[–] fishpen0@lemmy.world 8 points 6 months ago

They never sold the product. This is Reuters being slimy. The headline and article have been corrected:

Aug 14 (Reuters) - (This Aug. 14 story has been corrected to say that Costco will 'not sell' mifepristone instead of 'stop selling' the pill in paragraph 1 and removes reference to 'stopping sale' in paragraph 2)

This is like being angry at a gas station for never selling prescription lenses because they happen to have sunglasses on a rack in the front. Like, yes people buy reading glasses, and the gas station sells other kinds of glasses. But people tend to go to CVS to buy them so the gas station doesn’t want to carry them and, most importantly, never has in the entire history of their company.

[–] OccamsRazer@lemmy.world 4 points 6 months ago

Mifepristone is an abortion drug. It's use for birth control is off label.

[–] Capricorn_Geriatric@lemmy.world 20 points 6 months ago (4 children)

It's probably not even sales.

It's an off-patent, mass-produced medicine (read: cheap) with multiple uses, not just abortions.

There are a bunch of medicines that are both patented (i.e. expensive) and with way lower demand. In other words: less profitable.

So my reading of this: low demand is an outright lie. They're not carrying on the off-chance the fact they carry it becomes a burden.

[–] solrize@lemmy.ml 4 points 6 months ago (1 children)

They certainly carry plenty of cheap multi-use drugs like aspirin, but I'd expect the sales volume to be a lot higher. I wonder how many infrequently used cheap prescription drugs they carry. Yeah it's unfortunate if they're reacting to political pressure. They do still carry birth control I'm sure.

[–] SabinStargem@lemmy.today 2 points 6 months ago

From what I read elsewhere, they got Plan B. If Mileprostone is an abortion drug, that is a lot less useful than Plan B for casual use. Abortions are the kind of thing that are best monitored by doctors, what with the physical and emotional trauma that comes with it.

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[–] ToiletFlushShowerScream@lemmy.world 13 points 6 months ago (1 children)

All of Costco's new customers this past year suddenly regretting their choices. Fuck you Costco.

[–] morphballganon@lemmy.world 13 points 6 months ago

They never sold the product.

Why are you being so harsh to a company whose stance hasn't changed?

Is it because you're a right-wing troll trying to sow division among the left, or are you just really, really bad at reading?

[–] homesweethomeMrL@lemmy.world 7 points 6 months ago (1 children)
[–] morphballganon@lemmy.world 13 points 6 months ago

Bad news that they never sold it and haven't changed their stance?

[–] ayyy@sh.itjust.works 4 points 6 months ago

Clickbait bullshit.

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