A bill advancing in the Iowa Legislature would prohibit mail-order abortion pills and require hospitals to report complications from medication abortions to the state. The proposal, SSB 3115, cleared a Senate panel Monday and would require abortion drugs mifepristone and misoprostol to be dispensed only in person, rather than through telehealth appointments or by mail. According to Iowa Public Radio, the measure would also allow lawsuits against providers who violate the law, permitting the woman who took the drugs, the father of the unborn child, or immediate family members to seek damages for harm allegedly caused by the abortion-inducing medication. Supporters of the bill argue that the current federal policy lacks sufficient safeguards. Maggie DeWitte, executive director of Pulse Life Advocates, said the drugs can currently be shipped directly to a woman’s home without a physical examination by a physician. “This bill would restore some of the initial safeguards, such as an in-person, physical examination by a physician,” DeWitte said. In 2021, under former President Joe Biden, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration removed the requirement that abortion pills be dispensed in person, allowing them to be mailed. That decision, combined with shield laws in some states, has enabled providers to send abortion pills across state lines, including into states with abortion restrictions. Opponents of the Iowa bill, including groups such as Planned Parenthood and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, argue that telehealth access to abortion medication is safe and necessary to expand access, particularly following the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2022 Dobbs decision that overturned Roe v. Wade and returned abortion policy to individual states. However, the American Association of Pro-Life OBGYNs contends that eliminating in-person evaluations increases risks. The group has warned that without an ultrasound or physical exam, conditions such as ectopic pregnancies may go undiagnosed, and gestational age could be miscalculated. The Iowa bill would also require physicians to inform women about “abortion pill reversal” and mandate that hospitals report medication abortion complications to the state. Supporters say this would address concerns stemming from a 2016 FDA policy change that reduced mandatory reporting requirements for serious adverse events other than deaths. Iowa currently restricts most abortions once cardiac activity is detected, typically around six weeks of pregnancy. Within the state, patients are required to undergo an ultrasound at least 24 hours before receiving abortion-inducing drugs. Nationally, medication abortions accounted for 63 percent of all abortions within the formal U.S. healthcare system in 2023, according to the Guttmacher Institute. That figure marks an increase from 53 percent in 2020 and 39 percent in 2017. The bill now moves forward in the Iowa legislative process as lawmakers continue debating how abortion drugs should be regulated in the post-Dobbs landscape. The post Iowa Moves to Ban Mail-Order Abortion Pills appeared first on American Faith.