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 Tuesday's decision said the measure did not violate state
constitutional provisions aimed at keeping laws uniform across the
state, but also said it could compromise public health.
"We also must recognize that, by the States' own evidentiary
materials, more restrictions on abortions result in higher
complication rates and in decreased women's safety," the court
wrote.
The law requires that the drugs, including one known by the brand
name Mifeprex, be administered under U.S. Food and Drug
Administration protocols that critics say are outdated and pose
dangers to women.
The state's Republican leaders who supported the law said the
restrictions protect women. Those opposed have said the
FDA-recommended dosages increase risks to women of harmful side
effects because they are much larger than needed.
"The off-label use of abortion-inducing drugs has resulted in
catastrophic consequences for women nationwide, and I appreciate the
Oklahoma Legislature’s efforts to protect the health and safety of
Oklahoma women over the interests of the abortion industry,"
Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt said.
The lawsuit, filed on behalf of Reproductive Services, a non-profit
healthcare provider with a center in Tulsa, and the Oklahoma
Coalition for Reproductive Justice, said the law prohibited
off-label use of abortion-inducing drugs purposefully and
unconstitutionally, which limited non-surgical abortion options in
the state.
[to top of second column] |
When the FDA approved Mifeprex in 2000, it set up a regimen that
included relatively high dosages and three visits to a physician's
office, according to a paper from the Guttmacher Institute, which
backs abortion rights but whose research is used by both sides of
the debate.
Soon after, groups such as Planned Parenthood Federation of America
published medical standards for Mifeprex based on studies by the
World Health Organization and other developed countries showing that
lower dosages and fewer visits to the doctor were needed. As far
back as 2001, an estimated 83 percent of U.S. providers were no
longer using the FDA-approved regimen, Guttmacher said.
Ohio, Texas and North Dakota have similar laws restricting
abortion-inducing drugs, according to the institute.
(Reporting by Jon Herskovitz in Austin, Texas; Editing by Lisa Von
Ahn and David Gregorio)
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