Following the filing of a lawsuit last week against Colorado’s law banning the use of abortion pill reversal, a federal judge has ruled that a pro-life healthcare clinic is temporarily exempt from the law.
U.S. District Court Judge Daniel Domenico said that the law, S.B. 190 or “Prohibiting Deceptive Practices at Anti-Abortion Centers,” signed by Gov. Jared Polis on Friday as part of pro-abortion law package, “burdens their own First Amendment rights.”
Bella Health and Wellness, a Catholic-founded nonprofit clinic that offers abortion pill reversal for women who have taken the first pill of the abortion pill regimen, mifepristone, had filed the lawsuit on Friday — the same day the governor signed the law into effect. The clinic has a main campus in Englewood along with centers in Denver and in Lafayette, with a total of 18 healthcare providers who serve more than 20,000 patients.
The law prohibits medical professionals from providing abortion pill reversal, which consists of administering progesterone pills or injections, or risk facing $20,000 in fines per violation as well as the potential loss of their medical license. Thanks to Domenico’s injunction, Bella can continue to provide abortion pill reversal as the lawsuit proceeds — but other medical providers who offer the service in Colorado cannot.
“The legal merits of the plaintiffs’ claims present difficult questions that cannot be adequately analyzed within the time constraints necessary to prevent potential irreparable injury to the plaintiffs’ patients who have already begun progesterone treatment and may have their care interrupted absent immediate injunctive relief,” Domenico wrote.
The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Bella by the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty legal group.
“Colorado’s new law is the opposite of choice — it targets women who have changed their minds and forces them to undergo abortions they want to stop,” Laura Wolk Slavis, counsel at the Becket Fund, told Catholic News Agency. “This law tramples the constitutional rights of these women and their doctors. We are grateful for the court’s late-night order halting this draconian law, allowing our clients to continue their good work of serving women in need.”
The abortion pill consists of two drugs: mifepristone and misoprostol. Mifepristone is currently facing legal challenges due to the risks it poses to women and the Food and Drug Administration’s relaxing of safety protections surrounding the drug. Mifepristone blocks the naturally occurring pregnancy hormone progesterone, which works to sustain the life of the preborn child. Misoprostol causes contractions that then expel the baby.
Women who have suffered repeat miscarriages have for decades received progesterone shots or pills in an effort to prevent miscarriage and it has been proven to be safe. Women who take mifepristone and immediately regret it can contact Abortion Pill Reversal to be connected to a local medical professional who offers the service.
Andrea learned she was pregnant while in college and immediately thought she had to have an abortion, which her boyfriend agreed with. But when it came time for the abortion, Andrea felt a “black cloud” over her and hesitated. But she ultimately felt she had no other choice and took the mifepristone. She immediately regretted it and tried to make herself throw up. “I just knew I had made the biggest mistake of my life,” she said.
After getting home and trying to find a way to stop the abortion, her aunt told her to pray that the pill wouldn’t work. She soon received a call from her stepfather about abortion pill reversal. She called the number and a doctor met her immediately to begin the process which saved her son’s life. Watch her remarkable story in the video below.
A 2018 observational study showed a 64% success rate in reversing the effects of mifepristone with the use of injected progesterone and a 68% success rate with the use of high-dose oral progesterone. Each month, about 150 women begin the abortion reversal process and as of April 2022, 3,000 babies have been saved.
Healthcare professionals can join the Abortion Pill Rescue Network by visiting this website. For help with Abortion Pill Reversal, visit AbortionPillReversal.com or call 855-209-4848.
