Two Major Developments Over the Extended Christmas Weekend  

By Anne Reed

Washington, DC – When Roe v. Wade was overturned this summer, it was a victory for unborn babies, families, and state sovereignty. No longer was the U.S. Supreme Court the overarching authority superseding state law. Each state was, after nearly 50 years, free again to make its own laws concerning the sanctity of human life in the womb – without interference from the federal government.  

Over the extended Christmas weekend, two major developments brought rise to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as a replacement of sorts to the U.S. Supreme Court. The Roe v. Wade case established a so-called constitutional right to abortion for just about any reason. It made little difference what laws were passed on behalf of the people of a state by its elected officials. The highest Court had the final say-so.

But that all changed when Roe v. Wade was overturned. Or did it?

House Passed Resolution 1434 Affirming FDA’s Authority

On Friday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed Resolution 1434 which “reaffirmed” the “preemptive authority” of the FDA.

It was not enough to affirm that “there is well-established authority for the Food Drug Administration to approve, license, and otherwise regulate reproductive health products under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and the Public Health Service Act.” But the language of the resolution goes on to allege that the authority of the FDA and DOJ annuls that of the state legislature – at least when it involves abortion:  

(1) such federal laws preempt[s] (i.e., supersede[s] conflicting state or local laws) any state or local laws that prohibit or limit access to or use of any reproductive health product, and

(2) the Department of Justice has authority to enforce the preemptive effect of such federal laws by suing any state or political subdivision of a state that prohibits or limits access to or use of any reproductive health product.

In essence, the measure affirms the FDA’s ability to block states from banning abortion pills.

Not only did the FDA approve the abortion pills, but it revealed a disconcerting degree of recklessness last year when it removed the medical examination requirement for a woman seeking to secure the drugs. The originator of the two-drug death combo stressed the dangers of failing to have that safety precaution in place.

During Operation Rescue’s annual survey, at least one abortionist shared his disdain for any abortionist who would put a patient in that kind of danger.  

The Biden Administration has made clear its intention to utilize every mechanism possible to make abortion widely accessible. In order to reach any degree of success in diminishing state sovereignty, it must be strategic and persistent in its efforts. And the FDA seems to be the ticket.

FDA Changes Plan B Label – Not an Abortifacient

On the same day the House passed the resolution asserting the FDA’s god-like authority, the FDA announced its new description of the abortifacient known as Plan B, otherwise known as “the morning-after pill.” The label now claims it only prevents ovulation.

It has been widely known and understood for years that when Plan B is taken after intercourse, it either prevents ovulation or makes it impossible for the fertilized egg to attach to the uterine wall. In the latter scenario, pregnancy has already occurred, and the drug causes the newly conceived, unique human embryo to be expelled.

In recent years, some have claimed that a woman is considered pregnant only after the embryo has implanted. In accordance with that definition, Plan B would not actually terminate a pregnancy and would, therefore, not be an abortifacient.

Though it was a consequential scientific and moral argument before, the argument carries significantly more weight now that states have the freedom to ban the murder of all human beings at any stage of development.

The definition of pregnancy varies by state. While some states correctly clarify that pregnancy begins at conception/fertilization, others may describe pregnancy as beginning at implantation.

When a state defines pregnancy as beginning at fertilization and bans abortion from that moment, it has effectively outlawed drugs used to intentionally expel a growing new life from the mother’s body – whether it is the morning-after-pill or the two-step chemical abortion pills taken up to three months later.

“It is clear that the FDA is being used by the federal government as a tool to nullify the states’ ability to stop the legal killing of innocent human beings,” said Operation Rescue President Troy Newman. “After all that we have already seen from the FDA in recent years, from the way it hid the dangers of the COVID vaccine and approved its use for pregnant women, disregarded important safety precautions for unsuspecting women willing to ingest abortion-causing drugs, we should all be extremely concerned about the power being handed to the FDA and the usurpation of state sovereignty.”