The women argue the Trump administration should not defend a policy that makes it easier for people, including abusers, to get their hands on abortion pills.
More than a dozen women who have been harmed by chemical abortion drugs are urging Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche to settle an ongoing lawsuit between Louisiana and the Federal Drug Administration over mail-order access to the drugs.
The case, Louisiana v. FDA, concerns Rosalie Markezich, whose boyfriend was able to acquire mail-order abortion drugs from California thanks to rules implemented by the Biden-era FDA that halted in-person dispensing requirements during the Covid-19 pandemic. Markezich, who was excited to be a mother, was coerced into taking the pills and ultimately lost her baby.
A group of 14 women sent a letter to Blanche this week urging the Department of Justice to “act now to protect women by listening to and standing with Rosalie Markezich, rather than fighting against her in litigation.”
“We write as women from different backgrounds, ages, and regions of the country. Today, we write together with one voice: as women who have been harmed by abortion drugs. We also write with urgency,” the group wrote, asking Blanche to “side with Rosalie Markezich and settle her legal case immediately.”
“The FDA’s illegal abortion drug policy is responsible for this danger, and it is the same policy the Department is defending in court,” the letter continues. “This is not abstract. Rosalie herself says, ‘If mail-order abortion wasn’t a thing, I’m 100% sure I would have my child…. I do not believe a doctor would have prescribed me the drugs if I told her I did not want them.'”
The women argue the Trump administration should not defend a policy that makes it easier for people — especially husbands, boyfriends, and abusers — to get their hands on abortion pills.
The letter comes ahead of Blanche’s upcoming confirmation hearings set for July 15 and 16. He will undoubtedly face questions from Republican senators on this issue, as pro-lifers have accused the Trump administration of slow-walking efforts to reverse the Biden administration’s policy.
“Rosalie’s courage should not be met with delay, dismissal, or continued litigation that leaves the same dangerous mail-order system in place. It should be met with action. Settling this case would send a clear message that women’s safety matters, that coercion is real, that state laws protecting women and unborn children deserve respect, and that the Department of Justice will not ignore the real-world consequences of weakened abortion-drug safeguards,” the letter reads.
Jessica Williams, a signatory on the letter, was pressured by her ex-husband to have an abortion when she found out she was pregnant in 2022. Williams was able to order the pills online, with no screening process. The pills were from across state lines.
“I remember holding the pills in my own hands. I got them by crossing state lines.” Williams said. “I took the first abortion pill after succumbing the pressures of my ex-husband.”
Williams immediately regretted her decision. Because she is a nurse, she is aware of how the pills worked, and quickly sought out an abortion pill reversal. While Williams’s baby is alive today, she warns not all women are so lucky.
“It was too easy, to be honest,” Williams said.
Jamie Dangers, director of federal affairs at Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, said the FDA’s current rule, which paused in-person dispensing requirements for mifepristone and misoprostol, violates the Administrative Procedure Act.
“When there is a federal policy that allows something that states do not allow, there is of course going to be conflict.” Dangers said. “Because of online abortion drugs and abortion drugs through the mail, those laws [pro-life laws] don’t matter. They are on the books, yes, but how are they enforced when you can just get online?”
Meanwhile, shield laws, which have been passed in pro-abortion states to protect doctors who prescribe these pills to women who live in pro-life states, make getting these pills even easier, as there are no repercussions for doctors who allow these pills to cross state lines. Essentially, the pro-life laws states have passed following the overturning of Roe v. Wade are rendered useless.
“The crisis of mail-order abortion drugs is not an accident or coincidence but a direct result of Biden federal policy,” SBA Pro-Life America President Marjorie Dannenfelser said in a statement. “These are inherently dangerous drugs that do not belong where they can easily get into the hands of abusers. The courage of these women, increasingly coming forward to share their very personal suffering and advocate to spare others the same terrible trauma, cannot be understated. Common sense tells us they should not have to wait months or more for justice and change from this administration.”
Other signatories besides Williams include Tramelle Jones, Sara Huff, Elizabeth Henschel, Dora Rhode Esparza, Jannette Houston, Grace Cardoso, Abby Johnson, Kelly Lester, Erin Woods, Alani Harmon, Haile McAnally, Shanyce Thomas, and McKenzie Kaupa-Thiesse.