How to get abortion pill access by mail in Montana

Rosa lives in Texas where the law makes it hard to find pills by mail. Here is how she used a telemedicine service in another state and a mail forwarding service to get pills mailed to her home. It took about one week to get the pills this way. The $45-55 it costs is often much less than the gas to drive to another state. It saves on taking off from work or finding babysitting. Since the pills are recommended for up to 11 or 12 weeks from the last period, there is often time.

‍FIRST: She checked our map of states. She found a state that has telehealth abortion services. She chose California because it had many services.

SECOND: She set up a "virtual mailbox" in California. She used PostScan Mail.

• She filled out a form with her personal information and Texas address.
• The virtual mailbox used this information to fill out a USPS form that gives them permission to handle her mail. She signed the form.
• The cost for a virtual mailbox was about $35. This included $15 for one month mailbox rental plus a $20 online notary fee for the form.
• The virtual mailbox company provided the online notary service. She used her webcam for the brief online notary meeting (connecting by phone camera was also possible).
• She needed to show two forms of ID, one with a photo.
• She needed a credit card.
• She needed an email address or phone number.
• It was easy to set up.
• It took a few days to get approved. She waited until she got email confirmation that it was set up before doing the telehealth consultation.

THIRD: She checked our Guide to find a telehealth abortion in California (where she had the virtual mailbox).

• She chose a telehealth service that did not require a video visit. She did not want to have to answer questions about her location during the consultation. Services that do not require a video visit include: Aid Access, CHOIX, Forward Midwifery, Full Circle Health Center, Hey Jane, Lilith Care, and Pills by Post. [NOTE: Abortion on Demand does not ship to post office box or virtual addresses.]
• She filled in the online consultation form. She had to show her Texas ID.
• She listed her new virtual mailbox address in California as the shipping address for the abortion pills.
• She paid the telehealth fee using a credit card. They asked for the billing address for the credit card. She gave them her billing address in Texas.

FOURTH: She watched her virtual mailbox account in California so she would know when the package arrived.

• She asked for it to be forwarded to her home address in Texas.
• She had to choose between USPS, FedEx, and UPS forwarding services.
• There was a fee for this (about $15-20).
• They did not ask her what was in the package. If they had asked, she planned to say "nutritional supplements."
• It was easy.
• The forwarding service gave her a tracking number. She checked it so she would know what day her pills would arrive.
• The pills arrived at her home a few days later.

FIFTH: She cancelled the virtual mailbox so that she would not be charged another monthly fee.

Alex lives in Alabama where laws make it hard to find pills by mail. Here is how they used a telemedicine service in another state and drove across state lines to pick up the pills.

FIRST: They checked our map of states and found a neighbor state that has telehealth abortion services (Georgia was closest).

SECOND: They checked our Guide to find a telehealth service in Georgia.

• They chose a telehealth service that did not require a video visit. They did not want to have to answer questions about their location during the consultation. Services that do not require a video visit include: Aid Access, CHOIX, Forward Midwifery, Full Circle Health Center, Hey Jane, Lilith Care, and Pills by Post. [NOTE: Abortion on Demand requires a video visit and requires you to be physically located in the state that allows telehealth. It will not work for this option.]
• They filled in the online consultation form. They had to show their Alabama ID.
• They paid the telehealth fee using a credit card. They listed their Alabama address when asked for the billing address for the credit card.

THIRD: When the provider asked where to send the pills, they gave a friend’s address in Georgia.

• They were careful to tell the provider to address the package to their name followed by "c/o Friend's Name" and then the full address.
• This helps the Post Office deliver it correctly.
• Alex also could have used a general delivery post office address (see below). Or they could have gone to the clinic to pick up the pills, but their friend’s house was closer.

FOURTH: Their friend told them the package arrived. They went to their friend’s house to pick up the package. Their friend offered to re-send the package to them, but it was faster for them to drive.

FIFTH: They went home and took the pills.

• The provider gave them follow up by phone and text, even though they were back home in Alabama.

Cindy lives in Arizona where laws make it hard to find pills by mail. Here is how she used a “general delivery” address in another state and drove across state lines to pick up the pills.

FIRST: She checked our map of states and found a neighbor state that has telehealth abortion services (New Mexico was closest to her).

SECOND: She checked our Guide to find a telehealth service in New Mexico.

• She chose a telehealth service that did not require a video visit. She did not want to have to answer questions about her location during the consultation. Services that do not require a video visit include: Aid Access, CHOIX, Forward Midwifery, Full Circle Health Center, Hey Jane, Lilith Care, and Pills by Post. [NOTE: Abortion on Demand will not ship to General Delivery addresses.]
• She filled in the online consultation form. She had to show her Arizona ID.

• She paid the telehealth fee using a credit card. She listed her Arizona address when asked for the billing address for the credit card.

THIRD: When the provider asked where to send the pills, she gave a “general delivery” address in a town that she could easily get to. General Delivery is a free service at many US Post Offices. It is a way to receive mail when you don’t have a physical address. Here’s how she did it.

• She looked at a map to see what city or town in New Mexico would be easiest to get to.
• She checked the USPS website to make sure the post office in that town accepted general delivery mail (some don’t).
• She asked the telehealth service to send the pills to her general delivery address. A general delivery address looks like this:
  
  Your Name (as it appears on your ID)
  General Delivery
  City, State, Zip Code

FOURTH: She used the package tracking information provided by the clinic to find out when the package was delivered to the General Delivery Post Office. Then, she went to the Post Office in New Mexico to pick up the package.

• She made sure to go at a time when the Post Office business window was open. Check hours here. Note: most Post Office business windows are not open on weekends.
• She made sure to take ID that matched the name on the package.
• She told them she had a general delivery package and they gave it to her after checking her ID.

FIFTH: She returned home and took the pills.

• The provider gave her follow up by phone and text even though she was back home in Arizona.