As Red States get more emboldened after the Extreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, they’re moving us closer to Gilead, the dystopian, fictional country in The Handmaid’s Tale, as they retain power and gain even more.
Texas state Rep.-elect Pat Curry, a Republican from Austin, has filed legislation, House Bill 1339, that if signed into law, which more than likely it will, would reclassify two drugs used for reproductive health as controlled substances, which would place further restrictions on their access.
The proposal mirrors a law in Louisiana that went into effect Oct. 1 that treats mifepristone and misoprostol as controlled substances in state law. While the drugs are used in medication abortions, they have other applications such as treating life-threatening hemorrhaging.
Both Louisiana and Texas have strict abortion bans in place and bar the procedure in almost all instances.
Sen. Thomas Pressly, R-Shreveport, Louisiana, introduced legislation reclassifying mifepristone and misoprostol because his pregnant sister, Catherine Herring of Houston, was given an abortion drug by her then-husband without her knowledge.
Herring’s daughter was born 10 weeks premature, and her ex-spouse, Mason Herring, pleaded guilty to endangering a child and assault against a pregnant person. He was sentenced to 180 days, a punishment Pressly and his sister thought was too light.
“I commend the Texas Legislature for introducing legislation to address the weaponization of abortion drugs,” Pressly said in a text message Thursday evening. “The reclassification of misoprostol and mifepristone as scheduled drugs enables healthcare providers to continue to prescribe them for legitimate healthcare purposes while limiting the ability of bad actors to obtain them.”
“My sister and nieces’s story is a prime example of why the reclassification is necessary and appropriate,” the senator added.
