North Carolina Republican Introduces Bill To Crack Down On Abortion By Mail
North Carolina Republican Congressman Mark Harris introduced legislation on Friday that would block doctors from sending abortion drugs through the mail, he told The Daily Wire.
Harris put forward the “Teleabortion Prevention Act” to block doctors from providing women with drugs to end the life of their unborn child without conducting a physical exam or being physically present. The legislation, introduced as pro-lifers gather in Washington, D.C., for the March for Life, would mean doctors could face up to two years in prison if they send an abortion drug through the mail for a “self-managed” abortion.
“In the country, getting an abortion is as easy as walking to your mailbox. What this bill seeks to do is to protect women from that and it really just gives them an opportunity to be in a position to know what they’re doing,” Harris, a freshman representative, told The Daily Wire.
He said the bill would block the mailing of abortion drugs across the country. Chemical abortions are now estimated to make up over half of all abortions and have only increased since Roe v. Wade was overturned.
“If you’re in New York and you’re mailing those pills into Texas, then that’s going to be criminal. That’s going to be a problem,” Harris added, saying that the bill was in part motivated by the FDA loosening its guidelines on mailing abortion drugs in January.
The legislation would prevent doctors across the country from giving abortion pills to women “without physically examining the patient,” “without being physically present at the location of the chemical abortion,” and “without scheduling a follow-up visit.” Doctors who violate the law could be fined $1,000 and subject to two years in prison.
The legislation would not allow women to be prosecuted over abortion and would not impact ectopic pregnancies.
“I believe God is the creator of life. I believe He’s the one that gives life and I think that we are bound to protect it in every way we can,” Harris told The Daily Wire. “When we see a life taken in the womb we are seeing the place that should be the safest place anyone would ever be on the face of the earth, and that’s in her mother’s womb, absolutely invaded and destroyed.”
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Co-sponsors of the legislation include Republican Reps. Andrew Clyde (GA), Robert Aderholt (AL), Daniel Webster (FL), Brandon Gill (TX), Mary Miller (IL), and Michael Cloud (TX). Conservative organizations like SBA Pro-Life America, Heritage Action, March for Life Action, and the Family Research Council are also backing the legislation.
Abortion pills have flown into red states since the end of Roe, including in states where chemical abortions are banned. These pills are often sent by leftist activist networks who send pills to anyone without any age verification or medical input.
In December, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit against a New York abortionist accusing her of unlawfully mailing abortion drugs to a woman in Texas. The suit said the pill caused damage to the woman and ended the life of her unborn child.