Louisiana lawmakers introduced a bill Tuesday that would reclassify abortion pills as controlled substances, NBC News reported.
Louisiana lawmakers passed a bill that would classify mifepristone and misoprostol, drugs commonly used in medical abortions, as Schedule IV controlled dangerous substances. according to Go to NBC News. The decision is in line with Louisiana’s tough stance on abortion, which is already illegal in the state except in very limited circumstances. The bill, which currently awaits further approval from the Senate and possibly the governor, has sparked debate among anti-abortion groups, medical professionals and reproductive rights groups.
The Louisiana Legislature has approved a bill that would add two drugs commonly used to induce abortions to the state’s list of controlled dangerous substances and make possession of the drugs without a valid prescription punishable by fines, prison time, or both. https://t.co/OdwYyTcrpS
— NBC News (@NBCNews) May 21, 2024
The bill passed 64-29 in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives, highlighting the political divide on the issue. If the law were enacted, illegal possession of these drugs would be punishable by up to five years in prison, but pregnant women who used the drugs to self-administer would not be prosecuted, the newspaper reported.
Medical experts have expressed concern about the bill’s far-reaching implications. They noted that mifepristone and misoprostol have important uses beyond abortion, including inducing labor, managing miscarriage, and treating gastrointestinal ulcers, according to NBC News. Dr. Jennifer Avegno, along with more than 250 other physicians, spoke out against the bill, arguing that it misrepresents the safety of these drugs and could interfere with other important treatments. I’m raising it. (RELATED: Letitia James sues pregnancy center over abortion pill reversal claims)
“They are safe and effective and are not dangerous enough drugs of abuse to be on the Controlled Dangerous Substances List,” Avegno told NBC News. “From a medical perspective, health care professionals believe this is bad science and not well-informed.”
WASHINGTON DC – MARCH 26: Demonstrators gather in front of the Supreme Court during oral arguments in the U.S. Food and Drug Administration v. Hippocratic Medical Alliance case on March 26, 2024 in Washington, DC. The lawsuit challenges the FDA’s more than 20-year legal approval of mifepristone, a commonly used abortion drug. (Photo by Anna Rose Leyden/Getty Images)
of invoice It also introduces a new criminal offense called “compulsory abortion by fraud,” which targets individuals who administer these drugs without the consent of a pregnant person, and if the pregnancy is more than three months old. will be subject to even harsher penalties.
According to NBC News, Louisiana Republican Sen. Thomas Pressley introduced the bill because of a personal case involving his sister, whose estranged husband was convicted of secretly administering an abortion pill. It is said that it was influenced by. Critics like state Rep. Mandy Landry say the bill complicates access to essential medicines for legitimate medical purposes, especially in rural areas where storage requirements can limit availability. It claims to do so.
