(Tony Sifert, Headline USA) In light of the FDA’s recent decision to permanently lift restrictions on mail-order abortions, several states have moved to prohibit the out-of-state distribution of abortion pills, according to Breitbart.
Breitbart pointed to reports from both Kaiser Health News and the Guttmacher Institute, which indicate that at least seven states have recently taken steps to prevent out-of-state doctors from prescribing abortion pills to residents in their respective states, including Georgia, Kentucky, Texas, and Tennessee, among others.
In Georgia, Republican Sen. Bruce Thompson introduced Senate Bill 351 into the State Assembly on Jan. 25.
The bill would make it “unlawful for any manufacturer, supplier, physician, qualified physician, or any other person to provide any abortion-inducing drug via courier, delivery, telemedicine, or mail service.”
Thompson told the Associated Press that he thought dispensing risky abortion drugs through the mail was too dangerous.
“It puts great risk on those females who make that choice,” Thompson said. “What we’re asking is that these females have a physician involved.”
A similar bill — HB2416 — has been introduced in the Tennessee General Assembly.
“In this state, we have an opportunity to put safety measures around chemical abortion which currently allows the use of telemedicine and courier delivery, as opposed to a qualified examination and direct distribution of powerful medicines,” the bill’s sponsor told the Tennessean.
An article in Vox described the cavalier manner in which abortion “telehealth” companies distribute their deadly “medications.”
“Once a patient decides on a service that’s legally allowed to ship to their state — like Hey Jane, My Choix, Just the Pill, or Carafem — they fill out a medical history questionnaire, learn about the treatment, and sign a few consent forms,” Vox reported.
“Then, within hours, they’ll hear back from a physician if they’re eligible to manage the procedure at home; the pills arrive in one to five days.”
Vox also reported that at least 19 states already require “the prescribing clinician to be physically present when the pills are taken.”
