A Canadian official said the country’s government “would work to provide” Americans access to abortion drugs that could be banned in the U.S. Families Minister Karina Gould said in an interview that the Canadian federal government would attempt to assist American women gain access to the abortion pill mifepristone, in line with Canadian laws, in the event that the drug is banned in the U.S. Access to the drug in the U.S. is currently under a legal battle in the Supreme Court.
“What concerns me … is where you see laws in states where they’re actually criminalizing women [who] cross state borders to access reproductive health care,” Gould told CTV.
“And so, you know, we need to be very thoughtful about how we do this to make sure that we don’t further endanger, you know, American women who are seeking access to reproductive health care and services, as well as health-care providers,” she continued.
A Canadian official said the country’s government “would work to provide” Americans access to abortion drugs that could be banned in the U.S. (AP Photo/Allen G. Breed, File)
Addressing whether Canada has an ample supply of mifepristone, Gould said they are “not there yet” but that it is an issue the federal government is “thinking about” and actively “engaged on.”
“I know that this is an active conversation in the United States,” she said. “Let’s hope it doesn’t get to that point.”
Earlier this month, a U.S. federal judge in Texas ruled to revoke the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of mifepristone that had been done in 2000.
A U.S. federal judge in Texas ruled to revoke the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of mifepristone. (REUTERS/Evleyn Hockstein)
But on Friday, the Supreme Court paused the judge’s ruling. The 5th Circuit Court is currently considering a case to prevent access to the drug.
The fight over the legality of mifepristone comes after the Supreme Court ruled last June to overturn the landmark decision Roe v. Wade, which had said women had a constitutional right to abortion access under the 14th Amendment’s right to privacy. Last year’s ruling allowed states to make their own laws on abortion access.
Abortion access has been restricted in more than a dozen states since last year’s Supreme Court decision, and other states have pushed legislation to potentially restrict the procedure as well. Some Democrat-led states have enacted laws protecting abortion access.
Gould said in May 2022, before the Supreme Court’s decision, that American women could come to Canada for an abortion if Roe v. Wade was overturned.
“I don’t see why we would not,” Gould said at the time. “If they, people, come here and need access, certainly, you know, that’s a service that would be provided.”
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