Catholic groups call for more regulations on abortion pills

By RENEE WEBB
Content and Design Coordinator

Even though a number of brick-and-mortar abortion clinics throughout the country have closed in recent years – including Planned Parenthood in Sioux City earlier this month – the prevalence of abortion has not only remained but continued to grow thanks to medication abortions.

According to Tom Chapman, executive director of the Iowa Catholic Conference, the most recent statistics reported by the state of Iowa shows that at least 70% of abortions in Iowa are medication-induced rather than surgical.

“However, anecdotally we believe the number of abortions that are ‘off the books’ using drugs ordJohn Brehanyered online are increasing,” stated Chapman.

John Brehany, Ph.D., executive vice president and director of institutional relations for the National Catholic Bioethics Center, said public reporting on abortion in general has been “woefully inadequate – not rigorous enough and inconsistent among the 50 states."

With the data that does exist, Brehany, who worked in Sioux City from 2000-06 as director of mission services for Mercy Medical Center, pointed out that chemical abortions are now the majority, making up more than 60% of all abortions in the country.

Dr. Tim Millea, a retired orthopedic surgeon from Davenport who serves as chair of the Catholic Medical Association’s (CMA) Health Care Policy Committee, stressed that the “data” comes from the abortion industry itself. With that in mind, he suspects the number of medical abortions is “higher, and possibly much higher.”

Calling for more oversight
As the number of medication abortions continue to rise, many pro-life advocates and Catholic organizations are calling for more government oversight amidst the dangers associated with the abortion pills. Earlier this month, CMA joined with other prominent Catholic health and ethics organizations as well as the United States Council of Catholic Bishops to urge the FDA to conduct a review of the drug mifepristone.

Brehany, who served as the executive director and ethicist for the CMA from 2006-2014, said the medication abortion is typically a two-pill drug process.

“The first pill, mifepristone, blocks the production of progesterone in a pregnant woman,” he said. “Progesterone is essential for successful implantation and development of a newly conceived human embryo. The second pill, misoprostol, causes contractions in a pregnant woman, to expel the human embryo.” 

Developed in France in the 1990s, the abortion pill – previously called RU-486 – was approved by the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) for use in the United States in 2000 under the Clinton administration.

Use of mifepristone has grown because between 2000-2019, Brehany said rules and limits on its use, such as the need to see a physician before and after, were loosened by previous administrations. 

In 2000, it was for up to 7 weeks and in 2016 under the Obama administration it was extended to a gestation of 10 weeks and other requirements such as drugs to be taken only in office were removed. 

Brehany noted that some women may be tempted to take mifepristone even later in gestation and “the baby may be too large to be killed by the drug.”

In 2023, the requirement of one in-person visit was lifted as was the need for the drugs to be dispersed in the office.

A native of the Diocese of Sioux City from Graettinger, Millea pointed out the removal of limitations and regulations of these drugs over the past several years has been unprecedented in comparison to the FDA’s usual actions.  

“The agency is usually intent on restricting or removing drugs from the market due to adverse effects data,” he said. “The rationale for the easing of restrictions related to drugs for chemical abortions does not appear to be based on scientific evidence.  Those decisions seem to have been related to disregard for reports of harms to women and to promotion of a pro-abortion ideology.”

Millea was among 13 co-signers – representatives of national Catholic healthcare and pastoral ministry organizations - of a July 7 letter to FDA Commissioner Martin A. Markary. The letter focused on an urgent call for improved safety protocols and health protections concerning telemedicine chemical abortions as outlined in the position paper, “Telemedicine Chemical Abortion: A Catholic Medical Association Policy with Recommendations.”

Iowa regulation
Chapman pointed out that Iowa currently does not have any law which specifically regulates Tom Chapmanabortion drugs and one of the biggest concerns right now is that drugs are being mailed to women with no in-person exam before or follow up care.

“The ICC has been working on legislation that would require a prescription, an in-person visit, and informed consent about the possibility of reversing a medication abortion,” said Chapman. “Women deserve to know about the drug reversal process that might offer a chance for the woman to rescue her child when she has changed her mind about abortion, as well as spare herself the pain and regret of losing a baby.”

These drugs can be ordered online with no medical staff involvement, noted Dr. Millea.

“Often, the drugs are shipped from other countries, and there is no information about where or how they’re manufactured or what the pills contain,” he said. “There is very little tracking of abortion pills in the USA, and those that are obtained online are not tracked at all.” 

Given that these drugs are available “very cheaply and easily online,” noted Chapman, makes legislation to restrict mail order abortions very important.

“Very dangerous complications can arise after taking mifepristone, for example, infections and excess bleeding,” said Brehany. “If mifepristone is dispensed for the wrong condition, e.g., ectopic pregnancy, then very serious complications for the life and health of a pregnant woman can occur.”

Dangers with the process
A study of adverse events after chemical abortion was published by the Ethics and Public Policy Center in April 2025. That study, he noted, cited that over 10 percent of women who undergo a chemical abortion will suffer a serious adverse event within 45 days. Adverse events could include sepsis, infection and hemorrhaging.

Even if the abortion goes off without a threat to the mother’s life, they extended caution about the other negative effects. Dr. Millea said they are hearing from more and more women about the horrible experiences.

“Women should know that they most likely will be dealing with the aftermath of their chemical abortion at home and alone,” said Brehany. “Many women have been disturbed by seeing the remains of their unborn child, which may be more completely developed if they have waited longer to take mifepristone. In short, in addition to the ethical and clinical harms of chemical abortion, many women will experience emotional and spiritual harms as well.”

The women, added Dr. Millea, are given little or no instruction or guidance about what to expect, including the option of abortion pill reversal to save their baby.

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