Oklahoma Governor Signs Bill to Stop Abortion Pill Trafficking

Oklahoma has become the latest state to tackle mail-order abortions.

Gov. Kevin Stitt signed House Bill 1168 into law, making the trafficking of abortion-inducing drugs a felony in Oklahoma. A ceremonial signing was held May 19 with lawmakers and pro-life supporters.

The legislation, authored by Rep. Denise Crosswhite Hader, R-Piedmont, and Sen. David Bullard, R-Durant, creates a felony offense for anyone who knowingly possesses or delivers abortion-inducing drugs — including mifepristone, misoprostol and methotrexate — to someone who intends to use them for an unlawful abortion.

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Convicted offenders face up to 10 years in prison, a fine of up to $100,000, or both.

“Abortion is already illegal in Oklahoma other than to protect the life of a mother in an emergency,” Crosswhite Hader said. “What has happened, however, since that has become law in our state, is that people are trafficking abortion-inducing drugs to women who are already in a vulnerable state. That’s unscrupulous, and it needs to stop.”

She added: “This bill is about protecting women from the horrible side effects of these pills. It’s also to protect women from being taken advantage of by someone looking to personally profit from the distribution of these pills.”

Bullard described the measure in stark terms.

“We hear a lot about the trafficking of humans and children and rightfully so,” Bullard said. “We have worked hard to eliminate this enslavement of people. The trafficking of the abortion pill is no different than human trafficking and possibly worse. It is the largest killer of babies and the greatest threat to motherhood. It is the death sentence to an innocent baby who has been convicted of no crime and a false hope to a mother, soon to kill the child she carries. In fact, the injustice of the abortion pill being trafficked in Oklahoma is a generational loss of Holocaust proportions, and the victims are always twofold. Today, we took a big step in stopping both of those wrongs. Oklahoma will continue to stand for the rights of a person to have life, liberty and property.”

Crosswhite Hader said she has heard reports of non-medical professionals administering the drugs without understanding the risks, and she expressed concern for women who take them alone.

“I’m concerned that a woman given these drugs could die by herself, and they could keep her from being able to carry to term a pregnancy at a later date should that be desired,” she said.

The bill does not apply to individuals obtaining the drugs for themselves. It explicitly exempts contraceptives, in-vitro fertilization treatment, and medications prescribed for other lawful medical uses, including treatment for ectopic pregnancy or miscarriage.

Pharmacists, drug manufacturers and distributors legally handling pharmaceuticals for lawful medical purposes are also exempt.

The measure passed the House last year and the Senate this year.