WASHINGTON – The National Right to Life Committee praised Rep. Mike Conaway (R-Texas) for his introduction late yesterday of the Second Chance at Life Act of 2019. This protective legislation, based on a model developed by National Right to Life, will require that a woman be informed that the effects of the chemical abortion pill can potentially be reversed in order to save her baby if she changes her mind after taking it.  Seven states have enacted this legislation: Arizona, Arkansas, Idaho, Kentucky, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Utah.

 

“Over 500 babies have been saved by the abortion pill reversal protocol,” said Carol Tobias, president of National Right to Life. “We applaud Rep. Mike Conaway for leading the charge to empower women with the information that chemical abortions can be reversed and that their unborn children can be saved.”

 

The number of chemical abortions is increasing. The percentage of “early medical abortions” (the CDC’s designation for nonsurgical chemical abortions at or earlier than eight weeks gestation) in the last ten years has risen from 11.3% in 2006 to 24.2% in 2015. High numbers of chemical abortions are why nearly two-thirds (65.4%) of abortions are now performed at eight-weeks’ gestation or earlier.

 

The chemical (medical) abortion currently involves a two-step drug process. The first abortifacient drug (mifepristone or RU-486) is usually given at the clinic and begins the process of shutting down the unborn child’s life support system (nutrition, oxygen, etc.). The second drug, misoprostol, is taken 24-48 hours later, usually at home, to expel the baby and complete the abortion.   Research indicates that the first drug, mifepristone, alone is not always effective in ending a pregnancy. A woman may still have a viable pregnancy after taking the first abortifacient drug, mifepristone.