According to Axios, “Colorado is a leading provider nationwide of abortions.” A June report from the Society of Family Planning stated that “the share of abortion pills provided via telehealth in Colorado increased to 20 percent in March 2023, up from 14% in April 2022. … The proportion of telehealth abortions in the state is three times the national average of 7.4 percent.” As a result, abortions in Colorado have increased by an estimated 4,500.
With the leadership and impact of Governor Jared Polis (D) and other Democratic lawmakers, Colorado is considered an “abortion haven.” However, despite reports noting a drop in surgical abortions, with “32,260 fewer abortions performed in the United States in the first six full months after the Dobbs decision,” chemically-induced abortions are increasing significantly, with Colorado being a large proponent.
Chemically-induced abortions are also considerably more dangerous. According to former abortionist Dr. Anthony Levatino, “mifepristone blocks the action of progesterone, which the mother’s body produces to nourish the pregnancy.” Throughout this process, the baby dies in the womb and is then expelled from the uterus via contractions and bleeding caused by the drug misoprostol.
Catholic University of America professor Michael New, who also serves as a senior associate scholar at the Charlotte Lozier Institute, shared how mainstream media downplays the effects and dangers of abortion drugs. “Many media outlets have argued that chemical abortions are safe and that the science on the issue is largely settled,” he said. “However, a closer look at FDA policy changes and recent research tells a different story.”
Experts say a significant danger with the abortion pill, which can have serious health effects on the bodies of the women using it, is how easily accessible it is. According to Breitbart, “The [#WeCount] report notes that mail-order abortion pill prescriptions increased during the coronavirus pandemic and continued to increase after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.” Abortion pills can now be shipped directly to homes, and doctors are no longer the only medical professionals who can prescribe it, as New discussed. The drug is now used in more than half of abortions in the United States. Guttmacher Institute stated, “In 2020, the drug accounted for 53 percent of all abortions, up from 39 percent in 2017.”
In addition to the easy access of abortion drugs, “[Another] major factor for this Colorado abortion increase was a substantial rise in the number of out-of-state women seeking abortions,” New told The Washington Stand. He continued, “62% of abortions performed in Colorado were chemical abortions, a figure higher than the national average.” He added that there has also been a significant increase in Colorado telehealth abortions — likely coming from women who are out-of-state.
New also discussed how local efforts play a role in these numbers. Cobalt, for example, is a Colorado abortion advocacy group that is reported to have spent “$737,000 subsidizing abortions in 2022 — three times its 2021 levels.” New and other sources argue that the rise in Colorado abortions is a result of many factors coming together.
New concluded by sharing how Governor Polis signed legislation in April to ban abortion pill reversal treatments. “Though this law has not yet taken effect,” New said, “this legislation would tragically result in even more chemical abortions taking place.”
“The other side,” New told former Congressman Jody Hice on “Washington Watch” earlier this year, “is really pushing chemical abortions at the expense of unborn children and the health of women.” Fortunately, he continued, groups like Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) “is pursuing litigation against the chemical abortion pill. They’ve argued, I would say correctly, that the chemical abortion pill should have never been approved by the FDA in 2000. The FDA approved it under [the] kind of circumstances that should have only been allowed for life-saving drugs.” And, as New points out, “Pregnancy is not, in most cases, a life-threatening condition.”
In mid-August, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals dealt a huge blow to the Democrats’ chemical abortion agenda by ruling unanimously against the lax safety standards of the Obama and Biden administrations toward the abortion pill.
“In loosening mifepristone’s safety restrictions, FDA failed to address several important concerns about whether the drug would be safe for the women who use it,” wrote Judge Jennifer Elrod. “It failed to consider the cumulative effect of removing several important safeguards at the same time.”
The case, legal experts agree, puts abortion on another collision course with the U.S. Supreme Court. Until then, New urged, “We have some exciting opportunities in conservative states to pass better and stronger protective pro-life laws.”
Sarah Holliday is a reporter at The Washington Stand.
