A bill banning two pills used for abortions is now on Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry's desk.
The Senate concurred with House amendments to Senate Bill 276 and gave the bill final passage on Thursday by a 29-7 vote.
Senate Bill 276, authored by Sen. Thomas Pressley (R-Shreveport) would classify mifepristone and misoprostol as controlled dangerous substances under Louisiana law. Anyone caught possessing the drugs without a prescription will face a 10-year prison sentence. Sen. Pressly tacked the ban onto his bill after introducing it. The bill initially was designed to criminalize the act of putting a medication designed to end a pregnancy in a woman's food or drink without her knowledge.
Rep. Julie Emerson (R-Carencro) carried the bill in the House.
"I totally understand and agree that there are a lot of good uses for these medications, but if overutilized, they can be incredibly harmful and can cause death," Rep. Emerson said during debate on Wednesday.
Other lawmakers, like Rep. Aimee Adatto Freeman (D-New Orleans) said supporters of the bill put their politics and the desires of lobbyists such as Louisiana Right to Life over women's health.
"I'm sorry that you can't see what the doctors have come to us to tell us, because if you believe in the right to life, you would believe in maternal outcomes being the best for the women of this state," Rep. Freeman said during debate, referencing a letter signed by more than 200 Louisiana medical professionals urging lawmakers to kill the bill.
Earlier in the 2024 Legislative Session, lawmakers rejected a bill to add rape and incest exceptions to the state's abortion ban.
