Re: “Abortion is a health care issue, not a legal one — allow pills by mail” [May 25, Opinion]:
While certain states disingenuously argue about heartbeats at six weeks gestation, everyone should know that pregnancies are not viable outside the womb until 24 weeks gestation.
State laws designed to block access to early abortion or ban it completely under the false pretense of health, safety or preserving lives are patently dishonest. When people (read poor, Black or brown women) are denied access to comprehensive care, including abortion care, they suffer from worse health outcomes, more deaths and live in a cycle of poverty. The hypocrisy here is as plain as state laws that seek to restrict “legal voting” in the name of “fraud prevention.”
The Food and Drug Administration has 20-plus years of data on mifepristone for more than abortions. Op-Ed author Dr. Emily Godfrey’s research proves that models of care don’t require office visits to be equally safe and effective.
If the FDA lifts its restrictions on this medicine now, they take the personal decision about having a baby or ending a pregnancy out of the courts and place it back in the privacy of the doctor’s or clinician’s office, where health care takes place.
