South Dakota AG tells abortion pill advertiser to 'cease and desist'

UPDATE 12/12/2025: According to Mayday Health, only 14 of the original 30 gas stations are currently running the pro-abortion ad for the abortion pill. A representative from Mayday Health explained that not all of the gas stations had been confirmed, and according to KEOLAND, the list was created by a contractor before the campaign went live.

KEOLAND reported that Benny Spies, owner of Cowboy Country Store #3 in Watertown, said the Mayday Health advertisements would not be displayed at his gas station. He said his business will not be involved in any political or issue-based campaigns.

In addition, Sara Horning, owner of the Watertown Gas N Goodies, told KELOLAND News that she did not authorize the abortion pill ads to run at her business and will not.

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Likewise, Wayne Krump, owner of Gas Barrel in Sioux Falls, said he did not agree to display the pro-abortion ads either. While Gas Barrel was on the original list of 30 gas stations, it is not on the updated list of 14 emailed to Live Action News on Friday. “We are so pro-life. This hit us hard. We patronize God,” Krump told KELOLAND News.

12/11/2025: South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley has issued a "cease and desist" letter to Mayday Health, a pro-abortion organization that has launched a campaign in the state advertising abortion pills. And according to a local news report, the ads are already coming down.

Key Takeaways:

South Dakota officials have issued a cease and desist letter to Mayday Health, a pro-abortion organization that is advertising the abortion pill at 14 of the state's gas stations.
Chemical abortions via the abortion pill are illegal in the state.
Mayday Health has pushed its pro-abortion propaganda in other pro-life states, including West Virginia, Kentucky, and Florida.

The Details:

Mayday Health, a pro-abortion organization that advertises abortion in states with pro-life protections, has reportedly launched a new gas station ad campaign in South Dakota. The campaign features signs stating “Pregnant? Don’t want to be?” and includes a link to the Mayday Health website, where visitors find recommendations for five mail-order abortion businesses where they can order abortion pills.

The ads have been placed at 30 gas stations within the state, similar to a tactic the organization used in West Virginia and Kentucky.

On December 9, Governor Larry Rhoden asked Jackley to investigate Mayday Health, stating that its promotion of the pill via mail violates state law, which prohibits distribution of the abortion pill. South Dakota law protects the majority of preborn children from abortion.

“South Dakota has the most pro-life laws in the nation – I am proud of that fact,” said Rhoden. “This advertising campaign threatens the lives of children yet to be born in our state, and it also threatens the health of South Dakota mothers, as chemical abortions are four times as likely to cause a mother to end up in the emergency room.”

The day after Rhoden's request, Jackley sent the cease and desist letter to Mayday Health, noting that the organization's ads do not mention that distribution of the abortion pill is illegal.

“Your advertisement directs South Dakota consumers to resources that insinuate abortion-inducing pills are legal in South Dakota, while also urging women not to seek medical care after taking abortion pills and to keep their abortion a secret,” wrote Attorney General Jackley.

“Based on this information, it appears that your business practices constitute a deceptive act or practice under SDCL Ch. 37-24, the South Dakota Deceptive Practices and Consumer Protection Act,” he continued.

The state said it would file a lawsuit against the organization if it fails to comply with the law. Dakota News Now reported that "Mayday Health could face felony criminal consequences or civil penalties up to $5,000 per violation."

Zoom In:

Mayday Health is a pro-abortion group that has targeted a number of pro-life states with its advertising campaign promoting abortion, including Florida, West Virginia, Kentucky, Iowa, and Indiana. The organization shares information that encourages women to take the abortion pill past the FDA's approved gestational limit of 10 weeks, and it also encourages women to proactively order abortion pills — just in case they become pregnant (known as "advance provision"). This, too, goes against FDA protocols.

As Live Action News previously reported, the founders of Mayday Health, Sam Koppelman and Nathaniel Horwitz, are not health care providers or researchers. The organization promotes the abortion pill as safe, without mentioning any of the numerous risks that are associated with chemical abortion.

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The Bottom Line:

Gov. Rhoden promised that the state will continue to fight for preborn children who are at risk from tactics like Mayday's.

“South Dakota moms and babies deserve to be protected from deceptive advertising,” Rhoden said.

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