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.
OK, if you haven’t been to an American pharmacy then I will inform you that they don’t carry everything one might reasonably need.
To take another example, a few years I went to Costco for the nasal spray flu vaccine that my kid prefers. They didn’t have it and couldn’t order it. And no, this wasn’t due to some weird objection to vaccines. They had plenty of flu vaccine available, but only the kind administered with needles. Nor were they somehow unfamiliar with this version, because they did offer it in previous years.
It was also not offered by other big box pharmacies like Target or Walgreen’s. So to get the nasal spray flu vaccine, my kid would have to go to the pediatrician.