December 10, 2021

Texas Law Restricting Abortion Pills Goes into Effect

On Thursday, Nov 9, another notable pro-life Texas law went into effect. This law restricts the use of abortion pills to the first seven weeks of pregnancy. At the same time, it bans the delivery of abortion pills through the mail.

These protections mirror restrictions that used to be placed against abortion pills by the FDA before the pandemic. Before then, FDA enforced a set of restrictions on abortion pill distribution called Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies (REMS). Those restrictions required women to see medical professionals in person to receive prescriptions for abortion pills. Additionally, those prescriptions could not be sent through the mail. Under the Biden administration, those rules are on track to be removed permanently.

The Texas law states that “a manufacturer, supplier, physician, or any other person may not provide to a patient any abortion-inducing drug by courier, delivery or mail service.” The law also requires that an abortionist examine a woman in person before giving the prescription. The doctor must verify pregnancy, document the gestational age, and verify that there is not an ectopic pregnancy. In an ectopic pregnancy, the unborn child develops outside of the main uterine cavity. If a woman with an ectopic pregnancy takes the abortion pill regimen, she is at high risk of life-threatening hemorrhaging.

The law includes several other measures meant to ensure the safety of women who undergo chemical abortions. Click here to read more.