Arizona Passes Abortion Reversal Legislation
Arizona lawmakers have approved legislation that requires abortion providers to let patients know that they can take steps to reverse a drug-induced abortion.
More than 80 women across the country have used the abortion reversal protocol to deliver healthy babies.
The technique must be used within days of taking the first of two abortion pills. It involves flooding a woman's body with progesterone, the pregnancy hormone, to stop the deadly effects of mifepristone, the deadly drug found in the abortion pill.
The Arizona reversal requirement is the first in the United States. The legislation now heads to Republican Gov. Doug Ducey, who is considered pro-life but hasn't weighed in on this specific bill.
Doctors at Culture of Family Life Services in San Diego run the national Abortion Pill Reversal Hotline. They report 87 successful reversals in the last three years and 74 current pregnancies.
They also note that 40 percent of the women who have used the protocol to reverse their abortions have not been successful.
Even so, critics say more research is needed on the protocol.
Meanwhile, lawmakers in Arkansas are considering similar legislation.
To learn more about abortion reversal, watch Heather Sells' report on a mother who gave birth to her baby after making the decision to reverse her abortion.
