Shreveport senator's bill makes abortion pills controlled substances in national first

Louisiana is on the verge of classifying abortion pills as controlled dangerous substances, which would make it the first state to add misoprostol and mifepristone to such a list.

The House passed Republican Shreveport Sen. Thomas Pressly's Senate Bill 276 late Tuesday on a 64-29 vote.

Louisiana's Senate is expected to agree to changes made to the bill that would add the medications to the list and send it to Republican Gov. Jeff Landry to be signed into law. Abortion is already illegal in Louisiana, as are the use of the pills to induce an abortion.

Pressly's bill was originally written to add "coerced abortion by means of fraud" as a crime after his sister Catherine Pressly Herring's husband tried to secretly abort their baby by spiking her drinks with the abortion-inducing pills.

The original legislation had widespread bipartisan support when it cleared the Senate, but the bill became controversial after Pressly added an amendment in a House committee hearing to classify the abortion pills as controlled dangerous substances at the urging of the powerful Louisiana Right to Life lobby.

Misoprostol and mifepristone could still be used to treat other conditions, but as controlled dangerous substances they would have to be prescribed by a doctor.

The bill carries criminal prison penalties for anyone in possession of misoprostol or mifepristone without a valid prescription, though there is an exception for pregnant women.

Pressly told USA Today Network he doesn't believe his bill will present a barrier to accessing the medication "for legitimate medical purposes other than abortion."

But more than 200 doctors and medical students signed a letter sent to Pressly and other lawmakers and media that said the bill would create “fear and confusion among patients, doctors and pharmacists, which delays care and worsens outcomes" if it becomes law.

That was the primary concern expressed by the minority of lawmakers who voted against the bill.

"You are hampering you wife's or daughter's ability to get these drugs because people are going to be hesitant to prescribe these drugs," Democratic New Orleans Rep. Aimee Freeman said during the debate.

Republican Lafayette Rep. Julie Emerson, who presented Pressly's bill in the House, acknowledged the controversy created by the legislation.

"I get it would probably be unanimous (in support of the bill) if that (amendment) wasn't on it, but if overused (the drugs) can be harmful and cause death," she said.

The legislation has triggered national attention, even drawing the ire of Vice President Kamala Harris, who posted on X: "Absolutely unconscionable. The Louisiana House just passed a bill that would criminalize the possession of medication abortion, with penalties of up to several years of jail time. Let’s be clear: Donald Trump did this."

But Pressly fired back on the platform with his own post: "No, @KamalaHarris, what’s unconscionable is blatantly lying about my bill. Leaving out the part about 'not having a valid prescription' & our efforts to protect expectant mothers from being slipped abortion meds by diabolical spouses, that’s kind of a big omission. Do better."

More: Shreveport native's horrifying abortion story prompts bill from brother Senator Pressly

Greg Hilburn covers state politics for the USA TODAY Network of Louisiana. Follow him on Twitter @GregHilburn1.

This article originally appeared on Shreveport Times: Louisiana on verge of classifying abortion pills as controlled substances