{"id":97315,"date":"2016-07-08T17:50:45","date_gmt":"2016-07-08T21:50:45","guid":{"rendered":"\/news\/?p=97315"},"modified":"2016-08-31T14:55:40","modified_gmt":"2016-08-31T18:55:40","slug":"5-reasons-to-question-fda-changes-to-abortion-pill-protocol","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/5-reasons-to-question-fda-changes-to-abortion-pill-protocol\/","title":{"rendered":"5 reasons to question the FDA’s changes to abortion pill protocol"},"content":{"rendered":"
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In March of this year, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) changed the requirements for prescribing mifepristone (Mifeprex), the abortion pill. The change allows women to use the mifepristone further into their pregnancies and reduces the number of required visits to their healthcare provider from three to two.<\/p>\n

When the FDA initially approved the abortion pill, it was only to be used within the first 7 weeks of pregnancy.\u00a0 But in March the FDA extended the time period to 10 weeks<\/a>. This should concern the pro-life community. Though the FDA is supposed to be a \u201cpolitically neutral\u201d agency, the question that begs to be asked is whether this was a political move on the part of the FDA under pressure from the current administration and Planned Parenthood.<\/p>\n

Why should anyone question the integrity of the FDA?\u00a0 There is good reason to raise questions.<\/p>\n

1.<\/strong>\u00a0 It is well known that this administration has intentionally deceived<\/a> the American Public in the past.<\/p>\n

2.<\/strong> \u00a0So many in top leadership positions within Congress and the current administration, including the President himself, openly support abortion rights and pro-abortion organizations, especially Planned Parenthood. In fact, President Obama was honored by Planned Parenthood when he became the \u201cfirst sitting president to address Planned Parenthood.\u201d<\/p>\n

During a speech to Planned Parenthood in 2013, President Obama said<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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As long as we\u2019ve got to fight to make sure women have access to quality, affordable health care, and as long as we\u2019ve got to fight to protect a woman\u2019s right to make her own choices about her own health, I want you to know that you\u2019ve got a President who\u2019s going to be right there with you fighting every step of the way.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The Susan B. Anthony organization called<\/a> President Obama \u201cThe Most Pro-Abortion President Ever.\u201d<\/p>\n

3.<\/strong> \u00a0The head of the FDA, Dr. Robert Califf, was appointed by President Obama in 2015.\u00a0 Prior to his appointment to the FDA, Dr. Califf worked for Faculty Connection, a company that \u201dbrings together physicians and researchers from leading academic institutions with pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device clients\u2026. [W]e provide rewarding collaborations between academia and industry.\u201d<\/p>\n

This relationship raised a red flag and criticism from some, such as Dr. Michael Carome, director of the Public Citizen\u2019s Health Research Group, because of Dr. Califf\u2019s close financial ties with the pharmaceutical industry<\/a> and a company that provided them with regulatory consulting, including expertise in FDA regulatory submissions.<\/p>\n

Senator Bernie Sanders voted to block<\/a> Dr. Califf\u2019s appointment to the FDA, stating, \u201cDr. Califf\u2019s extensive ties to the pharmaceutical industry give me no reason to believe that he would make the FDA work for ordinary Americans, rather than just the CEOs of pharmaceutical companies.\u201d<\/p>\n

4.<\/strong>\u00a0 In 2006, Judicial Watch released information they obtained through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), which revealed that President Bill Clinton had ordered the FDA and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to coordinate the approval and marketing of RU486, known today as Mifepristone, the abortion pill.\u00a0 In fact, their report made it clear that the FDA bypassed<\/a> five standard requirements necessary for certifying the safety and efficacy of a new drug, and assisted<\/a> in the negotiation between pharmaceutical firms and the abortion rights groups in order to push RU486 through the approval process and into the market.<\/p>\n

5.<\/strong>\u00a0 The FDA\u2019s decision is suspect because it came unexpectedly at a time when tax funding to Planned Parenthood was being threatened as a result of the videos exposing their alleged selling of fetal body parts. By adding three weeks gestation, the number of women who are candidates for the pill increases, and, at about $800\/per patient treated with the abortion pill, \u00a0the increased revenue could be substantial.<\/p>\n

Keep in mind that some states do not require a physician to prescribe the abortion pill and it does not require surgical skills. \u00a0\u00a0Therefore, nurse practitioners and physician assistants as well as non-surgical physicians may be able to prescribe it.\u00a0 Again, increasing the number of providers able to provide medical abortion increases the number of patients that can be seen and prescribed the pill, in-turn increasing revenue.<\/p>\n

The FDA guidelines<\/a> state, \u201cMifeprex may only be dispensed in clinics, medical offices, and hospitals by or under the supervision of a certified healthcare provider.\u201d \u00a0They do not specify a physician. \u00a0Healthcare providers are required to register with the FDA, sign an agreement form, and to provide their patients with a medication guide. Though these are important steps for patient safety, (the medication does have potential side effects and risks), these requirements do not limit the number of medical abortions.<\/p>\n

Mifepristone is a stealth abortion procedure. Women will abort at home, in a more private, secret manner, which may be easier for the public to accept since the clinics won\u2019t have the fetal body parts to market or dispose of. Unfortunately, the woman herself will now have to cope with seeing and discarding the ‘products of conception’ (the first trimester\u00a0pregnancy, up to 10 weeks of development). Former abortionist, Dr. Anthony Levatino, explains the procedure in this video from AbortionProcedures.com<\/a>:<\/p>\n