The Iowa Board of Medicine has voted 8-2 to stop "tele-med" abortions in the state as early as November.
"Tele-med" procedures are performed when an abortionist communicates with a woman in another city or country via the Internet to prescribe abortion causing drugs like RU-486.
Medical board chairman Dr. Greg Hoversten, said he's personally pro-life, but the board's decision hinged on standard of care.
"How can any of us possibly find that a medical abortion performed over the internet is as safe as one provided by a physician in person?" he asked.
Carrie Gordon Earll with Focus on the Family, said the vote is important because Iowa is considered the birthplace of "webcam" abortions.
"This procedure was started in 2008 at Planned Parenthood of the Heartland in Des Moines," she said. "The abortion industry has been losing locations for some time now and this seems to be a way of adapting to these changes."
And, as always, there are risks.
"It's never safe for the baby and can be life threatening for the mother," she said. "And, it's hard to track RU-486 deaths because the death is often tied to infection and not the actual abortion. We know more than a dozen women died in US alone. To suggest that a doctor doesn't need to examine and see a woman before taking this drug just doesn't make sense."
Contact: Kim Trobee, CitzenLink
