Abortion advocates are sowing fear among doctors and pregnant mothers.
Abortion advocates are sowing fear among doctors and pregnant mothers.
I n light of the tragic deaths of two women in Georgia who took abortion drugs, the conversation around women’s health and safety has reached a critical juncture. As a pro-life U.S. senator and a pro-life OB/GYN, we feel compelled to challenge the narratives propagated by abortion advocates, which falsely claim that pro-life laws jeopardize women’s lives and that abortion drugs are as safe as Tylenol.
Vice President Kamala Harris has asserted that pro-life laws endanger women by restricting access to and even criminalizing health care. This narrative is false — no state prosecutes women for having an abortion. No state criminalizes miscarriages or the care associated with them. No state criminalizes removing an ectopic pregnancy. No state prohibits lifesaving care for the mother of an unborn child. There is no state where a woman has to be actively dying for a doctor to be able to care for her. But the rhetoric from Harris and the left instills fear rather than provide clarity.
Two weeks ago, Democrats in the Senate tried to pass a resolution saying women should be able to access lifesaving care, insinuating that such care is not available to them currently. The problem with this kind of political theater is that it’s misleading. The resolution incorrectly asserted that pro-life laws “force medical providers to decide between withholding necessary, stabilizing medical care from a patient experiencing a medical emergency or facing criminal prosecution, and put the lives, health, and futures of patients at risk.” That is simply not true. It’s this kind of messaging that creates uncertainty for both doctors and patients, even though pro-life laws are straightforward and allow lifesaving care.
Moreover, these false claims detract from the real dangers of abortion drugs — drugs that the Biden-Harris administration has made easier to obtain without in-person medical consultation. Contrary to the claims that chemical abortions are as safe as Tylenol, these pills can lead to life-threatening complications. According to the FDA’s own warning label, one in 25 women who take abortion pills will end up in the emergency room. Without consulting with a doctor, evaluations to rule out ectopic pregnancies or other serious medical conditions expose women to significant risks, complications in future pregnancies, and even death.
The tragic and painful loss of Candi Miller in Georgia underscores the dire consequences of misinformation. When Miller became pregnant, she sought an abortion at home using drugs ordered from overseas, despite having several underlying health conditions. Fearing the “current legislation” on abortion in Georgia, she did not seek medical help and ultimately died at home after taking the abortion pills. Her death reveals the painful reality and real threat of the narrative that pro-life laws hinder essential medical care and that abortion pills are harmless. They are not.
For years, the pro-life community has warned everyone willing to listen about the dangers of chemical abortions. Instead of heeding those warnings, the Biden-Harris administration rolled back safeguards and spread false information, which led directly to the preventable loss of life. Instead of taking ownership of their decisions, abortion advocates are using the very dangers we have warned about as a cudgel against pro-life states, sowing fear among both doctors and pregnant moms. Pro-life laws don’t endanger life; they safeguard it — both for the unborn child and the mother.
James Lankford represents Oklahoma in the U.S. Senate. Christina Francis is the CEO of the American Association of Pro-Life OBGYNs.