S.B. 2 was introduced on January 12, 2023 and referred to the Senate Health Policy Committee.

Description

This bill repeals M.C.L. 750.40, Michigan’s long-standing ban on advertising how-to guides for producing abortion drugs, striking it from the books after being continuously in effect since 1869 (albeit only partially enforceable under Roe).

Background

Michigan’s prohibition on abortion except to save the life of the mother has been in place since 1846. In 1869, however, it became evident that in order to circumvent the law, some individuals were encouraging women to create potions, tinctures, or other compounds designed to produce an abortion. These at home, do-it-yourself guides often contained dangerous and untested formulations that caused serious harm to women and their unborn children. This law was put in place prior to the Federal Food and Drug Administration’s creation in 1906.

History

In 1980, researchers at Roussel-Uclaf, a French pharmaceutical company, developed mifepristone (RU-486), however, it was not approved for usage in France until 1988. The current abortion pill regimen in use in the U.S. was FDA approved in 2000. Prior to that, abortions took place either surgically or via use of unapproved and sometimes dangerous drugs. The current formulation for chemical abortion consists of a 2-pill regimen. The first pill, mifepristone, can be taken up through the 10th week gestation and chokes off the unborn baby’s nutrition thereby causing the baby’s death. The second pill, misoprostol, is taken 24-48 hours after the 1st pill and causes uterine contractions to expel the unborn child. This is not to be confused with the “morning after pill” which is designed to delay ovulation and prevent pregnancy. Michigan’s ban on advertising abortion concoctions was not enforced since 1973 due the Roe v. Wade decision, though advertising for unapproved drugs or potions is still illegal under the federal FDA regulations.