Movement leaders praise gains but say the administration should restore restrictions on abortion drugs.
WASHINGTON—Pro-life advocates are calling on the Trump administration to reimpose restrictions on the abortion pill.
At the 53rd annual March for Life on Jan. 23, advocates praised the administration for policy victories against abortion, but many said more needs to be done.
The Biden administration loosened restrictions on obtaining the abortion pill, allowing women to get it without an in-person visit to the doctor. The Trump administration has let those regulations stay in place.
One of the movement’s most prominent leaders, SBA Pro-Life America President Marjorie Dannenfelser, said the Trump administration’s inaction on the interstate flow of the drugs is a reason for a national increase in abortions in America.
“In the wake of Dobbs, Biden eliminated the in-person dispensing requirement for abortion drugs—flooding the market with mail-order abortions without any meaningful medical oversight,” Dannenfelser said in a Friday statement, referring to the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health. That 2022 decision overturned the landmark ruling in Roe v. Wade, which said the Constitution protected a right to abortion.
Following that decision, Trump described abortion as an issue for states to decide. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is currently conducting a review of the safety of the abortion pill.
“The Trump-Vance position of ‘back to the states’ is being undermined every single day as abortion drugs flood illegally into pro-life states,” Danenfelser said. “Women are also paying the price, with horrifying cases of abuse and coercion emerging—including in Vice President Vance’s home state of Ohio.
“It is time for the Trump-Vance administration to act and, at a minimum, restore in-person dispensing, getting these dangerous drugs out of the mail.”
Her sentiments echoed those of Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who joined other Republican politicians at a Jan. 14 press conference calling on the FDA to act.
The Epoch Times has reached out to the White House for comment.
Trump’s second term has delivered major wins for the pro-life movement, including a bill defunding Planned Parenthood and other administrative actions. The day before the March for Life, the Health and Human Services Department announced it was ending funding for research that utilized aborted human fetal tissue.
“Six years ago, I was proud to be the first president in history to attend this march in person,” Trump said in a video address to rally attendees. “Since then, we have made unprecedented strides to protect innocent life and support the institution of the family like never before.“
Vance’s speech at the March for Life disputed what he described as an “elephant in the room,” or the fear that not enough progress was being made. “We love each other, but we’re going to have open conversations about how best to use our political system to advance life, how prudential we must be in the cause of advancing human life,” he said.
Vance added that “we have made tremendous strides over the last year, and we’re going to continue to make strides over the next three years to come, but I’m a realist.”
By T.J. Muscaro and Sam Dorman
