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AP: Louisiana’s abortion drug access law heightens hemorrhage risk for pregnant patients
Hospitals must lock misoprostol away, forcing nurses to fetch it during hemorrhages as doctors warn the delay can worsen blood loss.
- Louisiana law now classifies misoprostol as a controlled substance, forcing hospitals to remove the drug from medical carts and lock it in secure rooms designated for controlled substances.
- Republican state Sen. Thomas Pressly of Shreveport introduced the bill after his brother-in-law fed his sister the drug to cause an abortion without her knowledge; the legislature amended it to monitor both mifepristone and misoprostol.
- Nicole Freehill, a New Orleans OB-GYN, said nurses now sprint to retrieve misoprostol, delaying treatment by two minutes. "You could have a significantly worse hemorrhage," Freehill said, because the drug is no longer 2 feet away.
- The New Orleans Health Department called for the law's repeal in a report released last September, citing patient delays during hemorrhage treatment. Some pharmacists reported being "too afraid to release the medication," confused about legal requirements.
- Despite evidence of harm, similar legislation has been introduced in at least nine states. Alina Salganicoff of KFF warned the reclassification "puts a risk inside the healthcare system" and could delay time-sensitive life-saving care.
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Associated Press News+7 Reposted by 7 other sources
Louisiana’s abortion drug access law heightens hemorrhage risk for pregnant patients
Over the past decade, Louisiana hospitals began stocking specialized carts designed to treat hemorrhages, one of the most common pregnancy complications in the state.
·New York, United States
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Total News Sources8
Leaning Left5Leaning Right0Center3Last UpdatedBias Distribution63% Left
Bias Distribution
- 63% of the sources lean Left
63% Left
L 63%
C 37%
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