FRC's Tony Perkins' Statement on Today's Louisiana v. FDA Oral Arguments

WASHINGTON, D.C. --Earlier today, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana heard oral arguments in the case of Louisiana v. FDA, where the state is challenging the current FDA's permissive attitude toward the abortion drug mifepristone.

Family Research Council President Tony Perkins, and former Louisiana state representative and police officer, commented on the oral arguments:

"I applaud Attorney General Liz Murrill for standing up both for the rule of law and the health and safety of mothers and their unborn children. Along with a dozen other pro-life states, Louisiana has acted within its recognized authority to outlaw abortion, yet the FDA continues to undermine those laws at every turn. Louisiana reports that despite its laws prohibiting abortion, illegal chemical abortions now account for an estimated 600 to 800 deaths of unborn children each month -- nearly identical to the state's monthly average in the five years before Roe was overturned.

"As a former police officer, I saw first-hand how intimate partner violence can lead to tragic circumstances and out-of-state doctors prescribing these drugs without an in-person visit is the height of medical malpractice and too often leads to tragic circumstances. As we argued in our amicus brief to the court, the FDA's action endangers women by ignoring the connection between remote abortions and coercion. We urge the court to grant relief," concluded Perkins.

Family Research Council, along with renowned psychiatrist Dr. Martha Shuping, filed an amicus brief in the case, in support of Louisiana. In the brief, FRC and Dr. Shuping argued that the "FDA's action has enabled a flood of abortion drugs to be released into society without any in-person interaction between the pregnant woman and a medical professional. A single 'nonprofit asynchronous telemedicine service' mailed 118,338 abortion drug packs between July 2023 and September 2024. Yet FDA never considered the reality that many women will be coerced with these drugs if men, family members, and abusers can easily obtain them via remote means with no protection against coercion."

To read the amicus brief, please see: https://www.frc.org/get.cfm?i=LK26B29&f=LK26B29

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