While we’re waiting for the Supreme Court to rule on the mifepristone case — the one stemming back to a year ago when a Texas judge decided that the medication abortion pill was erroneously approved by the FDA… 20 years ago — anti-abortion activists have been promoting an alternate, equally-pernicious attack on science and reproductive rights: a fallacious procedure called “abortion pill reversal.” Needless to say, the scientific community disagrees. And so does NY Attorney General Letitia James. Fresh off her victory against Donald Trump (for which the $450 million fine remains to be paid), AG James has sued Heartbeat International and 11 other pregnancy crisis centers for fraud, deceptive business practices, and false advertising.

The suit: James alleges in the civil suit filed Monday that Heartbeat International and 11 of the anti-abortion pregnancy centers linked to it have engaged in fraud, deceptive business practices and false advertising by promoting “abortion pill reversal,” a procedure that major medical groups say is not backed by science and does not meet clinical standards. James’ office says the pregnancy centers’ “mission is to prevent people from obtaining abortions.”

All marketing, no proof: “Heartbeat International and the other crisis pregnancy center defendants are spreading dangerous misinformation by advertising ‘abortion reversals’ without any medical and scientific proof,” James said in a statement. The lawsuit claims Heartbeat International uses a “multi-media marketing scheme,” which includes advertising the procedure on its own website and offering tips to other centers to promote it in other communities. The lawsuit aims to stop the pregnancy centers from making these claims and seeks payment for their violations of the law.

Science? Fiction: The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists says the procedures are “unproven and unethical.” A 2019 study to evaluate the effectiveness of using progesterone to stop an abortion after mifepristone was halted due to safety concerns, after three patients — one who received progesterone and two who received placebos — were taken to the hospital for severe hemorrhaging.

Heartbeat’s network: Heartbeat International says there are more than 2,000 “pregnancy help organizations,” sometimes referred to as crisis pregnancy centers, affiliated with the organization in the US. On its website, the organization boasts an “Abortion Pill Rescue Network,” which aims to connect patients who have taken mifepristone with “medical professionals trained to administer the Abortion Pill Reversal protocol.” … “From the moment a woman takes the abortion pill, she has about 72 hours to change her mind and save her baby,” the group’s website states. The lawsuit points to Heartbeat International’s claims that this network “consists of 1,300 providers, clinics, and hospitals worldwide,” and has “assisted women in all 50 states and in 86 countries.”

Not letting them spread scientific lies is censorship! Heartbeat International told CNN in a statement that the lawsuit “is a clear attempt to censor speech, leaving women who regret their chemical abortions in the dark, and ultimately forcing them to complete an abortion they no longer want.” The organization claims James’ actions are “discriminatory and unfair by singling out these organizations solely because they offer an alternative to abortion.” After receiving a notice of intent to sue from James’ office last month, Heartbeat International and several crisis pregnancy centers filed a complaint against the attorney general April 30 to try to stop the action.

[From CNN]

Anyone else find it curious that the defendants’ first response is to cry censorship? If you thought you were legitimately providing a medically sound service, and had the data to support it, wouldn’t that be your best defense? The amount of oxygen that gets wasted on letting these guys preach their freedom to speak blatant lies is mind numbing. But Letitia James is methodical, deliberate, and cannot be intimidated. I take her bringing this lawsuit now to mean she’s lined up everything she needs to make a winning, lawful case. As has happened with every election since Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022, I hope this serves to help democrats in November. We need attorneys general who are bold and uncowed by power. We need judges who follow science and know how to separate personal beliefs from the practice of law. And so help us we need a president who respects the inalienable right of ALL people to bodily autonomy. The fascists are telling us loud and clear what they’ll do to the whole country if they’re elected in; vote them out.

Photos credit: Janet Mayer/startraksphoto.com, TheNews2/Cover Images, Robin Platzer / Twin Images / Avalon and via Instagram/Crisis Pregnancy Center