Lawmakers in the southern US state of Louisiana approved a bill Tuesday that would criminalize possession of abortion pills without a prescription, a move criticized as “unconscionable” by Vice President Kamala Harris.
The bill, passed the state senate today, would see two types of medication become controlled substances at a time when abortion rights are being hotly debated ahead of November’s presidential election. It is expected to be signed into law by the governor.
Mifepristone and misoprostol, commonly used for abortions, would join the Schedule IV list in Louisiana — putting them on par with Valium and Xanax.
A new Louisiana abortion law would make mifepristone and misoprostol, also known as the “abortion pills,” a controlled, dangerous substance – the first law of its kind in the nation. https://t.co/XILtbms3U4
— FOX 11 Los Angeles (@FOXLA) May 23, 2024
Possession of the medication without a prescription would be punishable by up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine, according to a text of the bill.
Authorized medical practitioners would be exempt, as would pregnant women if they had the medication for their own use.
Democrats believe hardline pro-abortion measures play against the Republicans electorally, and thus they have made it one of their key campaign issues.
“Absolutely unconscionable. The Louisiana House just passed a bill that would criminalize the possession of medication abortion, with penalties of up to several years of jail time,” Harris wrote on X on Tuesday.
“Let’s be clear: Donald Trump did this,” added Harris, who has previously criticized Trump for boasting of his role in reversing Roe v Wade, the federal guarantee of abortion rights that the Supreme Court overturned in 2022.
Abortion is banned in Louisiana with only very limited exceptions in cases of risk to the mother’s life or fetuses with fatal abnormalities.
President Joe Biden’s re-election campaign said it would hold a virtual news conference on the Louisiana bill on Wednesday morning with a reproductive health legal expert and a woman who was denied healthcare when she miscarried in the state.
Trump told Time magazine in April that he had “pretty strong views” on women’s access to mifepristone and would share his opinions within a week of the interview, but never did so.
He seems to keep kicking back this very important topic to a future date, but why the wait? What is he afraid of? Losing support on a very core issue to his supporters? He’s already made it clear, there will be a ‘compromised plan that will please both sides’ in the future.
During an interview with Pittsburgh TV station KDKA-TV, Trump was asked if he supports any restrictions on a person’s right to contraceptives. WATCH:
The Republican candidate has given mixed signals on abortion. In March he suggested he would favor a nationwide ban at 15 or 16 weeks of pregnancy but later backtracked to say such decisions should be left up to the states.
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