Show-Me State Times

During a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, U.S. Senator Josh Hawley urged Stanley Woodward, President Trump's nominee for Associate Attorney General, to collaborate with State Attorneys General to reinstate safety standards for the abortion drug mifepristone. This drug is used in 70 percent of abortions in the United States.

Senator Hawley criticized the Biden Administration's rollback of safety protocols that allowed unsupervised administration of the drug. He cited a study indicating that over 10% of women prescribed mifepristone experience serious adverse health events, including infection and hemorrhaging. According to him, this risk level is 22 times higher than what the FDA label currently acknowledges.

“Any limits on the drug imposed by voters at the state level, consistent with the Dobbs decision, are automatically overridden by what Joe Biden’s FDA decided to do,” Senator Hawley stated.

He expressed hope that the Department of Justice would work with states to uphold voter rights and state protection measures. “I just can’t imagine why the Department would want to defend the abortion regulations of Joe Biden," he added.

Senator Hawley has been advocating for reinstating mifepristone regulations. Recently, he secured a commitment from Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who agreed to review new data on mifepristone and suggested changes to its FDA label based on adverse effects. Additionally, Senator Hawley sent a letter urging Attorney General Pam Bondi to reconsider defending Biden Administration policies on mifepristone.

Missouri is leading efforts to reimpose safeguards on mifepristone nationwide.