AUSTIN, Texas (LifeSiteNews) — Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has sued a New York-based doctor for allegedly unlawfully prescribing abortion-inducing drugs to Texas residents in direct violation of state law.
“Dr. Margaret Daley Carpenter, a New York doctor and founder of the Abortion Coalition for Telemedicine, unlawfully provided a Collin County resident with abortion-inducing drugs that ended the life of an unborn child and resulted in serious complications for the mother, who then required medical intervention,” according to a press release from AG Paxton’s office about the case.
“Texas laws prohibit a physician or medical supplier from providing any abortion-inducing drugs by courier, delivery, or mail service,” the press release adds, noting that doctors are also prohibited from prescribing Texas residents drugs through telehealth services without a valid Texas medical license.
The release said that Carpenter knowingly prescribed abortion pills to Texas residents “despite not being a licensed Texas physician and not being authorized to practice telemedicine in Texas.”
“In this case, an out-of-state doctor violated the law and caused serious harm to this patient. This doctor prescribed abortion-inducing drugs – unauthorized, over telemedicine – causing [the woman] to end up in the hospital with serious complications. In Texas, we treasure the health and lives of mothers and babies, and this is why out-of-state doctors may not illegally and dangerously prescribe abortion-inducing drugs to Texas residents,” said Attorney General Paxton.
Following the overturn of Roe v. Wade, a legal clash between pro-life and pro-abortion states was inevitable
Since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022, once again allowing the elected branches of government to ban abortion, states have enacted wildly differing laws, with Texas establishing a near-total abortion ban and New York not only protecting abortions up to 24 weeks for any reason – and up to birth in many circumstances – but also shielding abortionists from out-of-state prosecutions.
While the Texas law does not seek to prosecute women who have abortions, medical professionals who violate the state ban are subject to strong penalties, including fines, loss of license, and prison time.
“Legal experts are divided on how the courts will address this complex issue, which involves the concepts of extraterritoriality, interstate commerce, and federalism – issues that have not been comprehensively addressed in U.S. law since the 19th century,” said Lawyer Monthly’s Izabel Modano. “Texas has made it clear that it will pursue cases like this one aggressively, potentially setting a legal precedent that could have far-reaching implications for the future of abortion access in the United States.”
New York Governor Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, said she is “committed to maintaining New York’s status as a safe harbor for all who seek abortion care [sic].”
“Make no mistake, I will do everything in my power to enforce the laws of New York State,” promised Hochul.
“As other states move to attack those who provide or obtain abortion care [sic], New York is proud to be a safe haven for abortion access,” said New York’s Democrat Attorney General, Letitia James, in a statement.
“If Texas wins, this case could open the door for the state to take further legal action against one of the largest organizations in the illegal abortion cartel: AidAccess,” said Kimberlyn Schwartz of Texas Right to Life.
AidAccess – with which Dr. Carpenter is affiliated – is an international group that circumvents national abortion laws by sending abortion pills through the mail, including Mifeprex.
“For the mail-order abortion industry that sells high-risk drugs without any in-person doctor visit, life is cheap and ‘DIY’ abortion highly profitable. Thanks to extreme blue-state politicians who shield them, abortionists in states like New York openly violate the protective laws of pro-life states, killing unborn children and sending women to the emergency room in dire condition – all while sitting comfortably thousands of miles away,” said SBA Pro-Life America Director of Legal Affairs Katie Daniel.
“We thank Attorney General Ken Paxton for leading the charge to hold out-of-state abortion businesses accountable for preying on Texas’ unborn children and their mothers. We hope his example will embolden other pro-life leaders and begin the undoing of the mail-order abortion drug racket,” she added.
Pro-lifers have often warned that even when “properly” taken, abortion pills are not only lethal to preborn children but more dangerous to women than advertised.
“As of December 31, 2018, there were reports of 24 deaths of women associated with Mifeprex since the product was approved in September 2000, including two cases of ectopic pregnancy resulting in death; and several cases of severe systemic infection (also called sepsis), including some that were fatal,” the FDA has warned, on top of 2,740 cases of severe complications from 2000 to 2012.
A recent peer-reviewed study by the Charlotte Lozier Institute also concluded that “the rate of abortion-related emergency room visits following a chemical abortion increased over 500 percent from 2002 through 2015, according to an analysis of Medicaid claims data.” Additionally, the study also found that “the rate of abortion-related ER visits is growing faster for chemical abortions than [for] surgical abortions.”