New Ohio Bill Is Latest Salvo in States’ Battle against the Abortion Pill
Lawmakers in Ohio are moving forward with a bill that seeks to warn pregnant women who are seeking the abortion pill of the serious health risks associated with the drug. The measure is the latest in a slew of state endeavors that are seeking to combat the vast spread and use of the abortion pill in the wake of the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision.
Ohio’s Senate Bill 309, which will get a second reading this week, would require expectant mothers who are seeking the abortion drug to sign forms informing them of the health complications associated with the pill, as well as their rights to file suit against abortionists and drug manufacturers and distributors if they suffer death, injury, or complications.
“Truly, this legislation is a patient protection policy,” state Senator and bill sponsor Kyle Koehler (R) testified during a committee hearing. “We know much more about the dangers associated with Mifepristone today than we ever have in the past, and the women who are being prescribed this medication have every right to know, as well.”
In April 2025, a breakthrough study found that women who take the abortion pill experience significantly higher rates of serious adverse health events than previously reported by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). According to data obtained from health insurance claims records, the Ethics and Public Policy Center (EPPC) report found that one in 10 women who used mifepristone experienced serious complications, including sepsis, infection, transfusion, hemorrhage, abortion-related hospitalization, abortion-related emergency room visit, ectopic pregnancy, unspecified other abortion-specific complications, as well as other life-threatening events, including cardiac and pulmonary events, thrombosis, anaphylaxis, and the necessity of surgery.
The Ohio bill is the second to address the abortion pill in recent months, with Buckeye State Republicans introducing a measure in November that would ban the mail-ordering of drugs that cause “serious adverse effects” in 5% or more of those who take them.
But Ohio is far from the only state that is attempting to combat the explosive spread of mifepristone, which has seen a 129% rise in use in recent years and now accounts for approximately 60% of all abortions carried out in the U.S. Last month, Florida lawmakers introduced the “Anti-Chemical Abortion Pill Trafficking Act,” which would allow expectant mothers who receive and use abortion drugs from abortionists and suppliers in other states to file civil actions against them for violating Florida’s pro-life laws, which protect unborn children at six weeks. The measure would also allow the family members of the woman to sue abortionists, even if she consented to the abortion.
Florida’s bill mirrors a similar measure that took effect in Texas in December, which allows Lone Star State citizens to file suit against abortion pill suppliers who ship the drugs into Texas in violation of its pro-life laws.
Meanwhile, Louisiana is taking a different approach by filing suit directly against President Trump’s FDA, asking the agency to reinstate the safety protocols requiring an in-person doctor’s visit to receive the abortion pill, which were present during Trump’s first term but were removed by the Biden administration (Family Research Council has filed an amicus brief in the case in support of Louisiana). The lawsuit is aimed at halting the flow of mailed abortion drugs into the Bayou State in violation of its pro-life laws.
Louisiana’s lawsuit follows the enactment of a state law signed by Governor Jeff Landry (R) last June that allows women who have undergone chemical abortions to file suit against abortionists who ship them the drug from out of state.
Mary Szoch, who serves as the director of FRC’s Center for Human Dignity, praised Ohio, Florida, Texas, and Louisiana’s efforts and urged other states to follow their lead.
“Praise God for state legislators who are continuing to work to protect innocent unborn children in the womb,” she told The Washington Stand. “In Ohio, the move to require informed consent for a drug that sends more than one in 10 women who use it to the hospital is commendable, and one that any state where legislators value women should follow. Similarly, I am grateful for the work of legislators in Florida, Louisiana, and Texas to hold drug trafficking abortionists accountable for breaking state laws and trafficking dangerous abortion drugs into pro-life states. The legislators in these states recognize that life in the womb has value, and they are willing to fight for the most vulnerable among us. Let’s pray that the rest of the nation follows their lead.”
Dan Hart is senior editor at The Washington Stand.


