3 Things to Know: Consumers Respond to Pharmacy Abortion Pill Discontinuation, Plus More Insights

by | Mar 13, 2023

Introducing the SPEC Report, an exclusive weekly report from CivicScience covering relevant social, political, economic, and cultural trends to help brands better understand and communicate with consumers.

Here are three key trends from this week’s report:

1. Women report worse emotional well-being than men, but are more open to discussing their mental health.

International Women’s Day (March 8) was another reminder of where women’s mental health and well-being stand today. The CivicScience Emotional Well-Being Index data show that women, especially young women, are more likely to report strong negative emotions, such as fear, sadness, and stress. Additionally, they report higher levels of financial stressors due to Long Covid. 

When it comes to opening up about mental health struggles with others, data show that men and women do so differently. Men report feeling the most comfortable talking to their spouse, whereas women are more likely to say they talk to a family member or a friend. Women are also more likely to speak with a therapist or healthcare provider, which is four percentage points higher than men. This gap is likely due to social and self-stigma associated with mental health. 

2. More than 4-in-10 Americans are less likely to shop at pharmacies that discontinue selling abortion pills.

In recent news, Walgreens has been at the center of a debate on abortion rights. The pharmacy announced they will no longer sell abortion pills (mifepristone) in all states where Republican officials have threatened to sue, including states where these pills are legal.

According to the latest CivicScience polling data, U.S. consumers are more likely to have a favorable view of pharmacies that continue selling abortion pills in states where they are legal – 40% say they would be ‘more likely’ to shop there, while 39% would be ‘just as likely’ and 21% would be ‘less likely.’ 

Conversely, more than 4-in-10 hold an unfavorable view of pharmacies that stop selling abortion pills and are less likely to shop there, while 23% would be ‘more likely.’

3. Frequent movie-goers may resort to streaming to avoid high ticket prices.

Following movie theaters experimenting with variable pricing that made some price-sensitive movie-goers unhappy, CivicScience data suggest these consumers may be more likely to resort to streaming services instead of heading to the theater.

Consumers who go to the movie theater monthly are the most likely to have three or more streaming subscriptions such as Netflix or Hulu (57%), and they are also the least likely to not subscribe to any streaming services (13%). On the other end, 40% of those who never go to the movies don’t subscribe to streaming services either.

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