Olivia Rodrigo didn’t give out abortion medication at her concert

On March 12, pop star Olivia Rodrigo stopped in St. Louis, Missouri, to perform for fans during her “GUTS” world tour.

The next day, viral social media posts claimed free emergency contraceptives, which many refer to as Plan B or the morning-after pill, were handed out to concertgoers by the Missouri Abortion Fund. Other posts on X suggested that Rodrigo had also passed out abortion medication to her fans during the concert.

“Olivia Rodrigo passed out an abortifacient at her concert in St. Louis last night,” one person said in part.

THE QUESTION

Did Olivia Rodrigo give out abortion medication at her concert?

THE SOURCES

• Missouri Abortion Fund, a non-profit organization under the National Network of Abortion Funds that provides financial assistance, public education and support for people needing abortion care and reproductive health services
• Right By You, a Missouri-based free and confidential text line that provides abortion access information
• Entertainment Industry Foundation
• American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists
• Mayo Clinic
• Julie, a healthcare company that sells an emergency contraception pill
• Plan B
• Stephanie Kraft Sheley, J.D., Right By You founder and project director

THE ANSWER

No, Olivia Rodrigo didn’t give out abortion medication at her concert.

WHAT WE FOUND

Olivia Rodrigo did not give out abortion medication to fans at her concert in St. Louis, Missouri, on March 12. Instead, the Missouri Abortion Fund and Right By You, a Missouri-based free and confidential text line that provides abortion access information, handed out free emergency contraceptives to concertgoers who wanted them. Emergency contraceptives do not induce an abortion.

On March 13, the Missouri Abortion Fund, a non-profit organization under the National Network of Abortion Funds, and Right By You both said on social media that Julie brand emergency contraceptives were handed out by both groups during Rodrigo’s St. Louis concert. However, abortion medication was not.

“No abortion medication was handed out at the concert,” Stephanie Kraft Sheley, Right By You founder and project director, told VERIFY in an email.

“We handed out the emergency contraceptive Julie as well as condoms, stickers, and information cards while speaking with people about our work, connecting people with abortion care and other forms of reproductive healthcare,” Sheley added.

A TikTok user posted a photo of the Julie emergency contraceptives she received at the concert with the caption “#fund4good.”

In February, Rodrigo launched “Olivia Rodrigo’s Fund 4 Good” in conjunction with her “GUTS world tour,” according to the Entertainment Industry Foundation. The “Fund 4 Good” is a global initiative “committed to building an equitable and just future for all women, girls and people seeking reproductive health freedom,” the Entertainment Industry Foundation says.

During the North American leg of the tour, Rodrigo has partnered with local chapters of the National Network of Abortion Funds, such as the Missouri Abortion Fund, “to ensure those most impacted by systemic racism, misogyny, and healthcare barriers can get the reproductive care they deserve,” the Entertainment Industry Foundation says.

“The ‘Fund 4 Good’ works to support all women, girls and people seeking reproductive health freedom. The fund will directly support community-based non-profits that champion things like girls’ education, support reproductive rights and prevent gender-based violence,” Rodrigo said in a TikTok video.

A portion of the proceeds from all ticket sales at the GUTS world tour will go towards the “Fund 4 Good.”

Emergency contraceptives or morning-after pills, including Julie and Plan B, are not drugs that induce abortion like the abortion pill, according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) and the Mayo Clinic.

“Abortion pills and morning-after pills are two different types of medication: Abortion pills end a pregnancy. Morning-after pills prevent pregnancy from occurring,” ACOG says on its website.

“Morning-after pills do not cause an abortion. They only work if you are not already pregnant. They must be taken soon after you have sex to be effective,” ACOG also said.

Morning-after pills are typically used within 72 hours to prevent pregnancy for people who have had unprotected sex or whose birth control method has failed. Morning-after pills are intended for backup contraception only, not as a primary method of birth control. They are not the same as mifepristone (Mifeprex), which is also known as RU-486 or the abortion pill, the Mayo Clinic says.

Missouri banned almost all abortions after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. Abortions in the state currently are only legal “in cases of medical emergency.” In February, Missouri senators voted against amending the state’s strict law against abortions to allow exceptions in cases of rape and incest.

On March 15, Variety reported that abortion organizations affiliated with the National Network of Abortion Funds would no longer distribute free emergency contraceptives and other reproductive health resources at Rodrigo’s concerts going forward. VERIFY reached out to the Missouri Abortion Fund and the National Network of Abortion Funds but did not hear back by the time of publication.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.