Unanimous Consent Request--S. 3072

Floor Speech

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Mr. CASSIDY. Madam President, I thank the Presiding Officer, Senator Hyde-Smith, and Senator Lee for organizing this colloquy and participating in it in support of the Support and Value Expectant Moms and Babies Act. I love that title: Support and Value Expectant Moms. Isn't that great? We should.

I am a doctor--not an obstetrician, but, nonetheless, I have delivered babies. As a doctor, my mission was to save lives--I don't practice anymore; I use the past tense--and improve health outcomes for all patients.

We are here talking about chemical abortions. Chemical abortions don't do any of that. The health risks can be severe, obviously, for the unborn child but also, potentially, for the mom, and, particularly, when the mother has this without supervision by a healthcare provider.

The total absence of medical support is the total absence of care, and using potentially dangerous chemicals without medical support can lead to the absence of health. If Americans care about a woman's health, they should be concerned when such procedures are allowed.

Yet chemical abortions are on the rise. I am told that in 2017 they represented nearly 40 percent of all abortions. Due to a recent court case, women can begin to receive these through the mail, prescribed without even receiving a physical exam.

Now, the mom who selects that may not know the potential consequences, but, as a physician, I do. The potential complications include, for example, if the mother has what is called an ectopic pregnancy, where the unborn child and the placenta are not in the womb but are outside of the womb. If that occurs and these pills are taken--the pill known as Mifeprex, RU486--it can cause that pregnancy to rupture, and instead of the bleeding coming out as the child would, through the vagina, it means that internal bleeding occurs, which can result in the mother's death.

Chemical abortions have four times the complications that surgical abortions do in the first trimester, and as many as 6 percent of women taking these abortion drugs require surgery to complete the abortion-- potentially painful and life-threatening and, of course, horrific for the unborn child.

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists has stated that ``compared with surgical abortion, medical abortion takes longer to complete, requires more active patient participation, and is associated with higher reported rates of bleeding and cramping.''

The bill we are discussing today, the SAVE Moms and Babies Act, or the Support and Value Expectant Moms and Babies Act, takes substantive steps to protect the health of women and the unborn child. The bill prevents approval of new abortion drugs by the FDA, keeps the risk evaluation and mitigation strategy, or REMS, protocol, and curtails abortion pills from being dispensed by mail or through telemedicine.

I introduced the Teleabortion Prevention Act of 2020 in February, which requires a doctor to physically examine a pregnant mom before prescribing any abortion-related drugs and requires a followup appointment. We actually want women to receive healthcare, by healthcare providers who care about their health.

If Senators in this body really care about women's health, they should join with us to stop these do-it-yourself abortions. Preventing abortion protects unborn babies, but preventing chemical abortions protects women.

Let's work together to protect women by passing the SAVE Moms and Babies Act to forever end dangerous chemical abortions.

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