On Friday, President Biden said in remarks after the Supreme Court’s ruling overturning Roe v. Wade that he would protect access to abortion pills and contraception.
In his remarks from the White House, Biden slammed the Court’s decision as a “tragic error” and called it “a sad day for the country.” He claimed that Roe “recognized the fundamental right to privacy.”
“It doesn’t mean the fight’s over,” the president stated. “My administration will also protect a woman’s access to medications that are approved by the Food and Drug Administration, the FDA. Like contraception, which is essential for preventative health care. Mifepristone, which the FDA approved 20 years ago to safely end early pregnancies and is commonly used to treat miscarriages.”
President Joe Biden said that his administration would protect access to medications and contraception. He called efforts to limit access to medication by state legislatures "wrong, extreme and out-of-touch with the majority of Americans." pic.twitter.com/Eta363hFBR
— USA TODAY (@USATODAY) June 24, 2022
A medication abortion consists of two pills, mifepristone and misprostol. The former stops the pregnancy from developing while the latter expels the pregnancy from the woman’s body. Townhall covered this month how at-home abortion pill startups are aiming to fill the gap in abortion access.
Axios reported Friday that Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement that states cannot ban mifepristone.
"The [Justice Department] strongly supports efforts by Congress to codify Americans’ reproductive rights, which it retains the authority to do. We also support other legislative efforts to ensure access to comprehensive reproductive services," Garland said in the statement Friday.
"And we stand ready to work with other arms of the federal government that seek to use their lawful authorities to protect and preserve access to reproductive care," he added. "In particular, the FDA has approved the use of the medication Mifepristone. States may not ban Mifepristone based on disagreement with the FDA’s expert judgment about its safety and efficacy."
Last year, when Texas enacted an abortion law that outlawed the procedure after fetal heartbeat detection, abortion pill usage reportedly skyrocketed.
“Extremist governors and state legislators are looking to block the mail or search the person’s medicine cabinet or control a woman’s actions,” Biden claimed in his remarks. He added that he thinks it is “wrong, extreme and out-of-touch with the majority of Americans.”
Pro-life organization Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America issued a statement in response to Biden’s remarks.
“Biden’s response to today’s historic decision proves he and the Democratic Party are the real extremists,” SBA Pro-Life America President Marjorie Dannenfelser said. “The overwhelming majority of Americans reject abortion on demand until birth and support far greater protections for unborn children and their mothers. For decades the Court prevented the people and their elected representatives from enacting that consensus in the law, and today it set them free."
“He [Biden] emboldens Democrat-led states to become ‘sanctuaries’ for abortion on demand, and continues to push for the expansion of dangerous mail-order abortion drugs that put women and their unborn children at risk,” she added. “Finally, after weeks of silence he has still not mentioned the dozens of documented terrorist acts against pregnancy centers, houses of worship and other pro-life organizations, nor announced a plan to combat them.”
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