Pro-life orgs call out FDA, Makary for not fulfilling promise to review abortion drug

By Tate Miller
The Center Square

Pro-life groups are holding the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and its commissioner Marty Makary accountable for leaving its promise to review the “dangerous” abortion drug mifepristone continually unfulfilled, with one organization calling for the commissioner to be fired due to his having “slow-walked” the review.

Director of Legal Affairs & Policy Counsel Katie Daniel at Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America told The Center Square: “The FDA should be led by a commissioner who prioritizes women’s and children’s health over politics and who does not undermine the president’s position that states should have the right to enact and enforce pro-life protections.”

SBA Pro-Life America recently called for Makary to be fired due to reports of his having “slow-walked” the promised safety study on the abortion drug.

Daniel told The Center Square that “the new [FDA] commissioner should reinstate the safeguards that were in effect under the first Trump administration and stop upholding the dangerous Biden policy of abortion drugs by mail.”

“And the commissioner should be transparent about how and when they will fulfill the long-promised safety review of these drugs,” Daniel added.

Daniel said that “as long as the Biden mail-order abortion policy remains in place, untold numbers of babies are dying, women are being harmed, and abusers are empowered.”

“Look no further than today’s news headlines,” Daniel said, referencing the reports about “an Ohio doctor who’s been criminally charged after he bought abortion drugs online and forced them down his pregnant girlfriend’s throat.”

“His horrific action was possible because of FDA’s mail-order policy,” Daniel said.

When reached, HHS press secretary Emily Hilliard told The Center Square: “FDA takes the time necessary to conduct comprehensive scientific reviews, and that is what Dr. Makary is ensuring as part of the Department’s commitment to gold-standard science and evidence-based reviews.”

The American Association of Pro Life OBGYNs (AAPLOG) also finds issue with the FDA slow-walking its promised “urgent review of dangerous abortion pills,” stating: “No more empty promises.”

AAPLOG CEO Dr. Christina Francis told The Center Square that “despite promising a thorough review of the safety of mifepristone, [the FDA has] not only apparently stalled the process for political gain but also approved a second generic version.”

“It’s a clear case of speaking out of both sides of their mouth, breaking promises to the pro-life movement and to the American public,” Francis said.

“But women’s lives are on the line, and that’s something we cannot ignore as physicians who care deeply for our patients,” Francis said. “The FDA shouldn’t either.”

Francis explained that “chemical abortion pills have not only ended the lives of millions of preborn children but have also caused significant harm to women.”

“Physical complications are not uncommon and include hemorrhage, retained tissue, severe infections, and the need for emergency surgery,” Francis said.

“The mental health impact is equally alarming, as many women are never told, or are not prepared for the fact, that they will endure labor and then likely see their baby and sometimes even watch their baby die,” Francis said.

“This is leading to cases of PTSD and has the long-term impact of increasing rates of depression, substance abuse and even suicide,” Francis said.

“As a professional medical organization representing nearly 8,000 medical professionals across the country, AAPLOG hopes the FDA will stop making empty promises and do its job,” Francis said. “The health and safety of our patients depend on it, and they deserve better than political maneuvers.”

In October, the FDA faced criticism for approving a generic version of the abortion pill despite its promises to review data on the dangers of the drug mifepristone, as Christina Francise referred to.

Additionally, as SBA’s Katie Daniel pointed out, “The American people do not support unrestricted mail-order abortion.”

“A recent poll found 8 in 10 voters agree no one should be able to get abortion drugs online or from a foreign country and be able to give them to a woman without her knowledge or consent,” Daniel said.