Earlier this week, several posts on the Instagram page of Aid Access, an abortion pill provider, were inaccessible to the public. Some images were blurred out, with no option to click through and view the post. Others appeared simply as a gray square with nondescript alt text, as if the image didn\u2019t load. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Aid Access<\/a> connects patients with doctors who provide abortion pills via telehealth appointments, and the posts that were blocked<\/a> from being viewed included instructions for performing at-home abortions using pills. The issues on Instagram \u2014 first reported by Jessica Valenti<\/a> \u2014 also reportedly<\/a> made it difficult to find the Aid Access account using the app\u2019s search function.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n By Thursday evening, Meta had restored<\/a> a handful of Aid Access posts, though some appear to still be missing. This latest incident is just another example of how Meta has restricted abortion information online for years. It also comes in the middle of Meta\u2019s right-wing pivot<\/a>, as the company has begun allowing more transphobic, racist, and otherwise hateful content on its platforms as it courts Donald Trump.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Medication abortions in the first trimester of pregnancy can safely be done at home, according to the World Health Organization<\/a>. Licensed providers like those working with Aid Access have prescribed abortion pills to hundreds of thousands of patients. Thanks to shield laws, which protect healthcare workers who provide the procedure, patients in states where abortion is banned or restricted can also order abortion medication.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n