Maine State Rep. Reagan Paul (R-Winterport) proposed a bill on Tuesday that would impose significant new restrictions on chemical abortions, preventing providers from prescribing abortion pills by mail through telehealth appointments and ensuring that the pills do not pollute the environment.
“Cemeteries in our sewer systems are being ignored as chemical abortion pill use has skyrocketed. Tiny, developing children—whose lives should be cherished—are instead being flushed away, along with tainted blood and tissue, with no regard for the consequences,” said Rep. Paul told The Maine Wire.
“This is a pro-life issue because every baby is precious, and a pro-environment issue because we have a responsibility to protect the natural world that sustains all life. It’s time for real accountability and action to stop this dangerous pollution and stand for both life and the environment,” she added.
Paul’s bill, LD 887, would require that any healthcare provider physically examine a patient before prescribing chemical abortion drugs such as Mifepristone. It would essentially eliminate so-called “telehealth abortions” that allow a woman to speak to a doctor via a video call, obtain a prescription, and receive the drug through the mail.
Maine currently has some of the most permissive abortion laws in the country, allowing abortions up to birth and, since last year, implementing “shield laws” to protect abortion providers from legal repercussions.
Those laws could allow a woman from a state where abortion is illegal to receive abortion pills in the mail after consulting a Maine doctor. In such a scenario, the Maine doctor would then be protected by the state’s shield laws from any legal penalties imposed by the state where the abortion actually takes place.
Although Paul’s bill does not aim to repeal shield laws, it would effectively prevent Maine doctors from sending abortion pills out of state. In addition to requiring a pre-prescription physical exam, the bill mandates a doctor to be physically present at the location of the abortion and to schedule another medical exam a week after the abortion takes place.
Doctors would need to issue a “catch kit” and a hazardous medical waste bag alongside the abortion pill to dispose of the fetal remains. This prevents the fetal remains from being flushed into sewer systems, and polluting them with chemical runoff.
Any doctor caught providing or attempting to provide a chemical abortion in violation of the new restrictions will be guilty of a Class C felony.
Paul’s bill also holds manufacturers of abortion pills responsible for properly disposing of discarded pills that can release harmful endocrine-disrupting chemicals, which cause a wide range of medical issues from infertility to cancer.
“Wastewater facilities are not required to test for RU-486, misoprostol, or other dangerous chemical pollutants that flow directly into our rivers, groundwater, and eventually, our food supply. These drugs are endocrine disruptors that can impact fertility, harm aquatic life, and contaminate drinking water, yet no one is being held accountable,” said Paul.
Under the bill, the manufacturers would be held civilly liable if endocrine disruptors from improper pill disposal are discovered in wastewater and could face fines of up to $20,000.
A report released in October of last year showed that “telehealth” abortions were the primary factor in a significant increase in monthly abortions from 2023 to 2024.
In addition to the belief of pro-life activists that abortions constitute the ending of an innocent human life, some have raised concerns that telehealth abortions, in particular, can be used by abusers and sex traffickers to force their victims to have abortions.
LD 887 has five co-sponsors and was referred this week to the Judiciary Committee where it awaits action.
