FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 26, 2021
Contact: Prudence Robertson, [email protected], 240-672-2828
Extreme Rollback of Safety Standards Endangers Vulnerable Women & Unborn Children
Washington, D.C. – On Monday the Oklahoma Supreme Court temporarily blocked the Abortion-Inducing Drug Risk Protocol Act and the Abortion-Inducing Drug Certification Program Act, state-level safeguards against dangerous chemical abortion drugs signed into law by Governor Kevin Stitt (R) earlier this year. The measures also establish a state-certification system for chemical abortion drugs to be overseen by the state’s Board of Pharmacy – the nation’s first state-level measure to certify and track chemical abortion drugs.
In April the Biden-Harris FDA announced that during the COVID-19 pandemic, it will no longer enforce the federal requirement of an in-person doctor visit to receive the abortion pill (RU-486 or Mifeprex). This policy allows for dangerous at-home, do-it-yourself abortions without medical oversight.
The national pro-life group Susan B. Anthony List (SBA List) slammed the ruling:
“This reckless ruling puts vulnerable Oklahoma women and their unborn children back at risk from dangerous abortion drugs,” said SBA List State Policy Director Sue Liebel. “Abortion advocates present the abortion pill as an easy, painless and private way to end a pregnancy – but these drugs are four times riskier than surgical abortion. Women who take them can get sicker, faster, are more likely to end up in emergency rooms, and could even die. While Washington Democrats have been pushing to permanently turn every post office and pharmacy into an abortion center, Oklahoma lawmakers stood up for women. Their pioneering state-level program requires these drugs to be dispensed in person by certified doctors only – the same requirement the FDA had until the Biden administration – and also ensures tracking of complications.
“Governor Stitt signed nine new pro-life bills into law this year, acting on the clear will of Oklahomans to protect unborn children and their mothers. We stand with them in this fight and hope the U.S. Supreme Court will soon recognize the right of all states to enact laws that reflect the values of their people.”
Chemical abortions constitute a growing percentage of U.S. abortions. A recent national study, written in part by scholars at the Charlotte Lozier Institute, examined cases of death and severe adverse events after chemical abortions nationwide, especially focusing on mifepristone, the first drug used in the two-part chemical abortion process.
The study analyzed complications which occurred between September 2000 and February 2019 in the U.S.:
- More than 20 women died of complications from chemical abortions.
- More than 500 life-threatening complications were reported.
- Nearly 2,000 “severe” complications were reported.
The study authors also estimated that complications are significantly underreported in the U.S., with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) relaxing reporting requirements even further in 2016.
SBA List is a network of 900,000 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.
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