Family Action of Tennessee

Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- A state Senate committee held a hearing on a measure that would require abortion practitioners to tell women about the risks and dangers associated with the abortion drug RU 486. The Senate Judiciary Committee heard debate on the bill but postponed a vote on it until a later date.

Under the measure, the abortion practitioner would inform women of the risks associated with the abortion drug, also known as Mifeprex, before giving it to her.

According to FDA reports, there have now been eight known deaths associated with RU 486 in the United States alone and thirteen women have died worldwide after using the drug.

FDA records also show, as of December, that there were nine life-threatening incidents, 116 blood transfusions, and 232 hospitalizations in the United States since the drug was approved for use in the waning days of the Clinton administration.

In total, more than 1,050 women have had medical problems after using the drug.

The bill in question would also require abortion practitioners to do an ultrasound on women using the abortion drug to verify the stage of pregnancy since the RU 486 abortion drug could cause severe problems if not restricted to the early stages of pregnancy.

Senator Jack Johnson, a Republican, is the sponsor of the bill and said it would protect the health and safety of women. He pointed out that one of the American women who died from using the abortion drug lived in Chattanooga.

"We have a serious drug, a drug that's killing women in some circumstances when it's not used properly," he said.

However, Senator Beverly Marrero, a Memphis Democrat, opposed the safety bill and said it was an attempt to limit abortions.

One leading doctor familiar with the abortion drug said last year that more should be done in response to the abortion drug injuring women.

Dr. James McGregor, an obstetrics professor at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, told an FDA panel hat the problems are sufficient to warrant limiting the use of the abortion drug or pulling it from the market entirely.

"I recommend we reduce or eliminate mifepristone, or at least consider that," McGregor said.

Related web sites:
Tennessee legislature - http://www.legislature.state.tn.us

Tennessee lawmakers are considering a proposal to establish requirements for doctors who administer the abortion drug mifepristone, known by the trade name Mifeprex or RU-486.

The Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday debated the bill that would require doctors to tell women about possible dangers of the RU-486 and require them to perform an ultrasound on women seeking abortions.

The ultrasounds would be used to rule out ectopic pregnancies, in which an embryo is growing in the fallopian tube, and to gauge how long the woman has been pregnant.

"We have a serious drug, a drug that's killing women in some circumstances when it's not used properly," said Sen. Jack Johnson, R-Franklin, the bill's sponsor.

Six women in the U.S. have died after taking the drug, including one woman from Chattanooga, Johnson said, citing a figure from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Donna Harrison, a retired obstetrician-gynecologist from Michigan, told the committee that the FDA cannot enforce the proper administration of the drug by doctors. The FDA approved the drug in 2000.

"We're talking about the health of the woman here," Harrison said. "It's not an abortion issue: The baby's going to die."

Sen. Beverly Marrero, D-Memphis, attributed an ulterior motive among anti-abortion advocates for trying to put more rules on how the drug is administered. Marrero said state abortion clinics monitored by Planned Parenthood already regularly use ultrasound exams, so the bill would be requiring doctors to do things they already do.

The panel decided to delay a vote on the measure after Senate Democratic Leader Jim Kyle of Memphis said he wants to consider whether it would make more sense for the Tennessee Board of Medical Examiners to set rules.