SBA Urges Senate to Delay Overton Confirmation Until Trump Admin Commits to Abortion Drug Reforms
For Immediate Release: Nov. 11, 2026
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SBA Asks Senators to Demand the Trump Admin Take Swift Action on Abortion Drug Rules and Study Before Confirming Overton
Washington, D.C. – Ahead of Heidi Overton’s confirmation process to lead the FDA, SBA Pro-Life America is urging senators to secure two commitments from the Trump administration before advancing her nomination: immediate restoration of the in-person dispensing requirement for mifepristone and reforms to the FDA’s ongoing safety study on mifepristone.
SBA’s Senior Vice President of Legal Strategy Erik Baptist says the U.S. Senate must press Overton for accountability:
“Confirmation is not a coronation. Before Heidi Overton’s nomination moves forward, senators must secure commitments from the administration that it will immediately restore the in-person dispensing requirement for mifepristone and address the serious flaws with the FDA’s mifepristone safety study.
“It is a tragedy that the Biden-era mail-order abortion drug regime remains in effect because the Trump administration has thus far chosen to defend and enforce it. The administration can still reverse course. As long as this policy remains in effect, any pregnant woman is vulnerable to a third party obtaining abortion drugs and using them against her wishes. Meanwhile, an estimated 15,000 unborn babies a month will die in pro-life states alone thanks to illegal mail-order abortion drugs.
“The FDA’s safety study must be rigorous, transparent, and grounded in the highest-quality data. But the FDA’s public filings indicate that its study is seriously flawed. The administration must fix those issues before the Senate can act on Overton’s nomination.”
Baptist recently sent a letter to Health & Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., urging him to immediately reinstate in-person dispensing. His letter cites the case of abortion drug poisoning survivor Rosalie Markezich, as well as recent press on the case of former West Point cadet Caleb Suh, who impersonated his then-girlfriend to order abortion drugs online, incapacitated her using Xanax, and forcibly aborted their unborn child. The crime occurred in early 2022—after the Biden FDA scrapped the longstanding requirement that mifepristone be distributed in person.
Charlotte Lozier Institute (CLI), together with the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists, submitted a new citizen petition last week calling on the FDA to ensure public confidence in the rigor and transparency of its safety review of the abortion drug mifepristone.
The petition asks the FDA to take several specific actions in conducting the review:
- Include all available Medicaid data, from September 2000 to the present, together with extensive private insurance records-linkage data.
- Invite the input of outside experts representing a diversity of methodological perspectives and research conclusions regarding mifepristone’s safety.
- Provide maximum transparency regarding the design, conduct, and evaluation of the review.
Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America is a network of more than one million pro-life Americans nationwide, dedicated to ending abortion by electing national leaders and advocating for laws that save lives, with a special calling to promote pro-life women leaders.
Charlotte Lozier Institute was launched in 2011 as the education and research arm of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America. CLI is a hub for research and public policy analysis on some of the most pressing issues facing the United States and nations around the world. The Institute is named for a feminist physician known for her commitment to the sanctity of human life and equal career and educational opportunities for women.
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