(LifeSiteNews) — So-called “telehealth abortions” must be stopped by the Trump administration in order to save preborn lives, according to a pro-life expert.
Professor Michael New commented on the latest report from the Society of Family Planning, which found there were about 1.13 million abortions in the United States in 2025.
“The number of abortions remains higher than before Dobbs,” the latest data from the pro-abortion group’s #WeCount database shows.
“The number of abortions provided via telehealth has increased; across 2025, over 300,000 abortions were provided via telehealth,” the group also found. However, this does not capture all the abortions done using chemical drugs, as someone could go to a hospital or Planned Parenthood and still obtain the drugs. Approximately 66 percent of abortions in the United States are now done using chemical drugs.
In any case, this means about 29 percent of abortions are done outside of a physical location, oftentimes with the drugs mailed into states with protections for preborn babies, such as Louisiana.
The Society for Family Planning also said “shield laws” account for about 180,000 total abortions. These are laws where pro-abortion states, like New York, pledge not to help pro-life states prosecute lawbreakers.
For example, a California or New York abortionist could illegally ship deadly chemical abortion drugs into Louisiana, Texas, and Indiana without any fear of punishment. Put another way, about 20 percent of abortions in the United States are illegal.
Professor New, who teaches at Catholic University of America, said Trump must act on telehealth abortions.
“Since many women residing in states with strong pro-life laws are obtaining abortions via telehealth, these telehealth abortions are undermining many pro-life laws that were passed since the Dobbs decision,” New wrote at National Review.
He continued:
Overall, this #WeCount report provides further evidence that stopping telehealth abortions needs to be a top priority for pro-lifers. The pro-life laws that have been passed since Dobbs have certainly done some good. Multiple analyses of state birth data have shown that these laws have saved thousands of lives. However, these state pro-life laws are weakened by the presence of telehealth abortions.
New then alluded to a long-awaited Food and Drug Administration (FDA) review of chemical abortion drugs. The demand for a review has been a sore spot between pro-life leaders and the Trump administration, which appears to have dragged its feet on a new study.
The Wall Street Journal reported several weeks ago that the administration has now started a review, which happened to follow the ouster of former FDA chief Marty Makary. Under Makary’s leadership, the FDA approved a new generic abortion drug.
The WSJ reported that, all this time, the agency has allegedly been “making preparations by acquiring data and examining whether a study was feasible.”
“The effort is expected to take about six months, administration officials said, meaning it likely won’t be completed before the midterm elections,” the article stated.
Professor Michael New called on the Trump administration to use the FDA’s regulatory power now to stop telehealth abortions.
“This is an important public health concern,” he concluded. “The Trump administration’s FDA need not wait for the completion of a study to halt telehealth abortions.”
Pro-life laws have not been completely ineffective
Despite the flood of abortion drugs into the states thanks to the lax approach of the Biden administration, which Trump has largely continued, there is still evidence that pro-life laws are saving some babies.
A 2026 paper by a pro-abortion economist found that states with “total abortion bans” saw an increased usage of food assistance programs.
“States that implemented total abortion bans by the start of 2023 experience a 1.6% increase in the overall birth rate in 2023 and a 4.3% and 2.1% increase in monthly postpartum women and formula-fed infant [assistance] participation respectively, leading to a total additional $6.9 million in food costs,” Lilly Springer wrote.
Commenting to The College Fix, Michael New said this paper was valuable in showing the benefits of pro-life laws.
“If births increase after a strong pro-life law takes effect, that is powerful evidence that the pro-life law is preventing abortions and saving lives,” he wrote.