The FDA finished out the year by permanently lifting safety restrictions on the abortion pill regimen, an unsafe abortion procedure that is made more dangerous by the removal of in-person requirements. For over two decades, the abortion pill regimen was regulated under the FDA’s Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies (REMS) program. In that time, thousands of women who have undergone chemical abortions have experienced adverse effects and 24 have died, and there is evidence that abortion pill complications are significantly underreported. Under the FDA’s new rules, “DIY” at-home abortions can be distributed by mail after a telehealth visit without so much as meeting the prescribing provider face-to-face.
Recent data from the CDC revealed that chemical abortions made up 44% of reported abortions in 2019. CDC data for 2020 has not yet been made available, but the influence of lockdowns and temporary lifting of REMS protocols likely contributed to an even further increase in chemical abortions, as was seen here in Minnesota.
This is the next front in the fight for life. For decades, pro-life sidewalk counselors and pregnancy resource centers have done incredible work offering hope to abortion-minded women. While the need for their work will continue, increasingly, women who feel like abortion is their only option will be making that decision without even leaving their home or dorm room. The pro-life movement needs to reach these women, as well, and help them see that abortion is not the answer.
Abortionists and their allies are actively pushing for increased use of abortion pills, embracing “self-managed” abortions in a sudden pivot from one of their favorite talking points. Plan C Pills, a group that describes itself as a “resource” for at-home abortions and has received glowing media coverage encourages women in states that maintain safety restrictions on chemical abortions to consider getting abortion pills online from international pharmacies, saying “No prescription is needed. No medical screening or advice is given. Receive the pills by mail. Take the pills at home.” Even with REMS safety requirements lifted, the abortion pill is still a prescription drug, and buying and selling prescription drugs online without a prescription is illegal and potentially dangerous.
Not only are abortion activists encouraging risky and potentially illegal actions, but they continue to gloss over the reality of “self-managed” chemical abortions. Take the ghoulish display outside the Supreme Court building early last month — abortion activists chanted that they were “taking abortion pills forever” before swallowing abortion pills in front of the crowd. The people standing around did not see the bloody aftermath of taking the abortion pill or the heightened risk for emergency room visits. Instead, abortion was passed off as liberating and even exciting.
The truth is that the abortion pill ends the life of a preborn child and does so in a way that is dangerous to the child’s mother. The abortion pill has ended the lives of over 5 million babies in the U.S. since it was legalized in 2000. A recent study from the Charlotte Lozier Institute showed that, as chemical abortion rates climbed from 4.4% to 34.1% of all abortions between 2002 and 2015, emergency room visits from abortion pill complications increased by 500%. In a press release, Dr. James Studnicki, vice president of data analytics at the Charlotte Lozier Institute stated,
…the increasing dominance of chemical abortion and its disproportionate contribution to emergency room morbidity is a serious public health threat, and the real-world data suggests the threat is growing.
Removing the in-person requirement for the abortion pill adds to its danger. The abortion pill is less likely to be effective after 10 weeks, increasing the chances of a partial abortion that could lead to infection and other complications if the age of the baby is not confirmed with an in-person visit. Removing the in-person requirement also means that an ectopic pregnancy cannot be detected, which can be life-threatening.
As chemical abortion begins to take center stage in the fight for life, the Abortion Pill Rescue Network recently reported that they have saved 3,000 babies to-date and they received a record number of calls during COVID-19 lockdowns. Those 3,000 babies are living proof that abortion pill reversal is possible and that there is hope for women who change their minds about abortion after taking the first pill.
The FDA’s move to permanently lift restrictions on the abortion pill endangers women and will end the lives of millions more babies. As abortion shifts away from clinics and abortion facilities and into people’s homes, being a voice for the voiceless in our communities is more important than ever. We must boldly affirm the sanctity of every human life, expose the lies of the abortion industry, and offer compassion and hope to women in unplanned pregnancies.
If you or someone you know has taken the first abortion pill, there is still hope! Go to www.abortionpillreversal.com or call 1-877-558-0333 to learn more.
Image: Youtube, Shout Your Abortion
