New York barred from censoring pro-life groups’ abortion pill reversal promotion
A federal judge has temporarily blocked New York Attorney General Letitia James from trying to stop the promotion of the abortion pill reversal treatment by pro-life pregnancy care centers.
In an order released Tuesday, U.S. District Judge John Sinatra issued a preliminary injunction against James on behalf of several pro-life groups, including the National Institute for Family and Life Advocates, Gianna's House, Inc., Summit Life Center, Inc., and the Evergreen Association, Inc.
Peter Breen of the Thomas More Society, which is helping to represent the pro-life centers, said in a statement Wednesday that the injunction was "a critical victory for New York's pregnancy help organizations and another blow to Letitia James' unconstitutional witch-hunt against pro-life ministries."
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"These small nonprofits, which exist to compassionately serve women and offer them alternatives to abortion, deserve to have their speech elevated — not chilled," said Breen. "This court order makes clear Ms. James cannot censor pro-life speech purely because she dislikes it."
"We are hopeful that this injunction will buttress our case in New York state court, where we proudly continue to defend the host of pregnancy help organizations unjustly targeted and sued by Ms. James as part of her unconstitutional campaign to silence pro-life ministries."
Sinatra's order builds off of a temporary order from last month barring New York from forcing the pregnancy care centers to stop promoting the reversal treatment.
"Plaintiffs are irreparably harmed each day that their First Amendment freedoms are infringed," Sinatra, a Trump appointee, wrote in the August order, as quoted by The Associated Press.
"[The preliminary injunction] serves the public interest by allowing women to access and receive information that may lead to saving the lives of their unborn children."
In May, the state attorney general announced that she was suing Heartbeat International and 11 pro-life pregnancy care centers over their promotion of the abortion pill reversal treatment.
Specifically, James accused the pro-life groups of engaging in "false and misleading claims" when promoting the reversal treatment, which remains hotly debated between pro-choice and pro-life advocates.
"Abortions cannot be reversed. Any treatments that claim to do so are made without scientific evidence and could be unsafe," James claimed in the announcement. "Heartbeat International and the other crisis pregnancy center defendants are spreading dangerous misinformation by advertising' abortion reversals' without any medical and scientific proof."
"Amid the increase in attacks on reproductive health care nationwide, we must protect pregnant people's right to make safe, well-informed decisions about their health."
Last month, the Thomas More Society filed a complaint against James on behalf of Summit Life Outreach Center and The Evergreen Association, accusing the attorney general of unlawfully threatening the pro-life groups.
An abortion pill reversal treatment is done when a pregnant woman undergoing a medication abortion changes her mind about the procedure and takes progesterone, a natural hormone, to counteract the chemical abortion drugs.
"Progesterone is a natural hormone needed to sustain pregnancy and has been used for decades to safely and effectively prevent miscarriage and forestall preterm labor," stated the pro-life group Heartbeat International, which claims that thousands of lives have been saved through the treatment.
"Abortion pill reversal displaces mifepristone (the first drug in a chemical abortion) from progesterone receptors using the natural progesterone hormone, counteracting the effects of mifepristone and allowing the baby to continue growing. For women who have begun abortion pill reversal, progesterone treatment is continued through the end of the first trimester at a minimum, and beyond that if needed."
Critics of the treatment include the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, which argues that the scientific evidence for the effectiveness of the reversal treatment is lacking.
"Facts are important, especially when it comes to policies and discussions that impact patients. Claims regarding abortion 'reversal' treatment are not based on science and do not meet clinical standards," stated the ACOG.
