Texas filed suit on Tuesday against the Biden administration over its federal mandate requiring pharmacies to fill prescriptions for abortion pills nationwide.
The president’s Department of Health and Human Services last July issued new regulations requiring that roughly 60,000 pharmacies across the country offer abortion pills. This action came a mere three weeks after Roe was struck down.
These pharmacies face being found guilty of violating federal law if they refuse.
However, no such federal law exists after the Supreme Court’s landmark Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision. The administration’s action was simply an attempt to circumvent the high court’s clear conclusion.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton noted in his filing that the high court’s ruling meant that abortion decisions are now made by state governments. The majority in effect removed federal authorities from the equation.
Texas Files Lawsuit Against Biden to Stop Sales of Dangerous Abortion Pill https://t.co/88ZOtlKsbI pic.twitter.com/6qdQ4EiIXW
— LifeNews.com (@LifeNewsHQ) February 8, 2023
This being the case, Washington’s requirement that pharmacies dispense abortion pills runs counter to many state laws and is in violation of the Supreme Court’s ruling.
In a statement, Paxton declared that the White House knows very well that it does not have the legal authority “to institute this radical abortion agenda.” So without firm legal footing, it is merely attempting to bully pharmacies by threatening to withhold federal funds.
The Texas AG noted that his state and several others have enacted laws to protect the rights of the unborn. He said the Lone Star State will not back down in the face of unelected Washington bureaucrats exercising “illegal, extremist federal policies.”
The Biden administration made another attempt to work around the law in January when the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) moved to enable Americans to order the abortion drug mifepristone through retail pharmacies. That backdoor action did not go unnoticed.
A group of 20 state attorneys general, led by Missouri Republican Andrew Bailey, addressed a letter to CVS and Walgreens over the issue. The state leaders cited clear federal law that prohibits abortion drugs from being delivered through the mail.
The White House and its Democratic allies are attempting to nullify the Supreme Court’s ruling in Dobbs. However, they are wrongly trying to legislate through regulation what they cannot ram through Congress.
This runs counter to the constitutional separation of powers and should be stopped. The attorneys general are correct in countering Washington’s attempts to legislate through federal agencies and intimidate through illegal regulations.
