The American power more than ever worried about women. The White House expressed concern Wednesday, March 1, about a potential “devastating” ban on abortion pills across the United States, which a conservative judge could decide.
Such a decision would be “unprecedented and devastating for women. And we would find ourselves in uncharted territory,” US executive spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre said during her routine press briefing. “We are working closely with the Department of Justice and the Department of Health to be prepared” for this eventuality, she said.
A Texas federal judge, Matthew Kacsmaryk, can since February 24 render his decision at any time on a complaint filed by opponents of abortion against the United States Medicines Agency over the authorization in 2000 of mifepristone ( RU 486), one of the two pills used for medical termination of pregnancy.
These plaintiffs ask the magistrate, known for his ultra-conservative positions, to suspend without delay this authorization for the whole of the United States. His decision could have enormous consequences, since 54% of abortions performed in the country today are medical.
Since the Supreme Court of the United States dynamited the right to abortion last June, fifteen states have banned abortions on their soil and abortion pills are illegal there. But women who live there can still get the pills from neighboring states, a simpler procedure than surgery.