A New York doctor was criminally indicted by a grand jury in Louisiana -- which has some of the strictest abortion regulations -- for allegedly prescribing an abortion pill taken by a minor in a first-of-its-kind lawsuit that could test interstate abortion laws and shield laws intended to protect doctors in states where abortion is legal.
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Louisiana bans abortion at all stages. The law states no person can administer, prescribe or procure for any pregnant woman any medicine drug or substance with the intent of terminating the pregnancy. It allows for a doctor to "perform a medical procedure necessary in reasonable medical judgment to prevent the death or substantial risk of death" of the mother, but states the doctor must first "make reasonable medical efforts under the circumstances to preserve both the life of the mother and the life of her unborn child in a manner consistent with reasonable medical practice." The law also states any person who knowingly performs an abortion by abortion-inducing drug shall be imprisoned for between one and five years and/or fined between $5,000 and $50,000.
"This is exactly the scenario we envisioned could happen and why I signed into law very tough shield laws, where I am proud to say I will never, under any circumstances, turn this doctor over to the State of Louisiana under any extradition request," Hochul said in a video statement posted to X.
ACT called the case against Carpenter "the latest in a series of threats that jeopardizes women's access to reproductive healthcare throughout this country." In its statement the group said since Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022 they've "witnessed a disturbing pattern of interference with women's rights ... and this state-sponsored effort to prosecute a doctor providing safe and effective care should alarm everyone."
Carpenter was separately sued by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in December for allegedly mailing an abortion pill to a Texas patient. The lawsuit -- which was civil, not criminal -- said Carpenter violated Texas law by treating a patient despite not being allowed to practice medicine in the state and violating the state's abortion ban that prohibits providing any abortion-inducing drugs. Texas sought to bar Carpenter from treating other patients in the state and for her to pay at least $10,000 in damages. Carpenter did not comment on the lawsuit, but the Abortion Coalition for Telemedicine said in a statement Paxton was "prioritizing his anti-abortion agenda over the health and well-being of women by attempting to shut down telemedicine abortion nationwide" and said the medication for an abortion is safe, effective and "an essential part of women;s healthcare."
Louisiana has one of the strictest abortion laws in the country following the overturning of Roe v. Wade and doesn't allow exceptions in the cases of rape or incest. After the Supreme Court decision was overturned, medication abortion became integral to abortion access as it allows people in states with bans to more easily obtain medication rather than traveling out of state. Medication abortion -- which typically involves a combination of mifepristone and misoprostol -- was the most common form of abortion in 2023, accounting for 63% of all abortions in the U.S., according to the Guttmacher Institute, which does research on reproductive health. A number of states have passed shield laws similar to New York that seek to protect providers in states where abortion is legal if they prescribe abortion medication to people in states with different laws.
8,000. That's about how many women each month received abortion pills in the mail in states that severely restricted abortion or had limits on telehealth abortion pill prescriptions in 2023, the Associated Press reported last year, citing a survey done by the Society of Family Planning.
Texas Sues N.Y. Abortion Provider For Mailing Pills Into State (Forbes)
New York doctor indicted for prescribing abortion pill in Louisiana (Associated Press)