Why the Mifepristone Win Requires us to Do More to Protect Florida’s Reproductive Rights

When I learned that U.S. Supreme Court had agreed to take up the challenge to mifepristone, or Food and Drug Administration (FDA) v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, I immediately typed the medication name into google to attempt to learn more. What I found astounded me: the amount of blatantly misleading misinformation, along with articles guiding people to fake abortion clinics, was overwhelming. On closer inspection, I discovered that much of the content was sponsored by the state of Florida. How, I remember thinking, are pregnant people and families going to be able to access medical information under this new reality?

The news that the Supreme Court struck down the challenge to the FDA's regulation of mifepristone came as a huge relief. The removal of the approved drug would have hindered access to abortion for millions across the country, particularly for those here in Florida where abortion is now extremely restricted. While we celebrate the news, I'm still concerned how the spread of misinformation will impact those who seek to access mifepristone, and how it could negatively impact our work to get abortion rights enshrined in Florida's constitution this November.

While access to medical abortion has been restored for all Americans, pregnant people in Florida are currently living as a restricted class. Under the new restrictions enacted by Governor DeSantis and our legislature, the life of a pregnant person is deemed less than the life of her fetus. The actions of Florida's leaders are deeply personal, and as a mother to two daughters I'm taking it personally. Like millions of women, I had an exceedingly difficult and high risk first pregnancy- one that forced me spend a week in a hospital when I was 22 weeks along. I ended up having a healthy baby daughter, but I'm comforted that, at that time, my doctor would have been able to provide necessary health services should something have gone wrong.

This idea is something I can never let go of: when we have the technology and medical knowledge to take care of people, why are we letting Florida women face the reality that they could bleed out in our emergency rooms? And as a woman of faith, I am angered by those who somehow preach about the sanctity of human life while openly endorsing policies that threaten the life of any pregnant person.

It is my commitment to my faith, and my being raised in a Jewish home in the 1960s and 70s, that has spurred me to get involved in passing Amendment 4 in Florida. As I grew up in a dramatically changing world, my family home and later my synagogue were the places I saw social justice truly in action. From every cause, from ending apartheid to the Vietnam war, I was encouraged to seek truth in our religious texts. From overcoming oppression to standing up for equality, these texts always provided answers and guidance that compelled my community and my family to fight for change.

It is the study of our Torah that commands us to fight for the restoration of reproductive rights. We are told, 'If a woman's labor becomes life threatening, the one to be born is dismembered in her abdomen… for her life comes before the life of the fetus' (Mishnah Ohalot 7:6). Judaism also teaches that we have an obligation to seek and receive healthcare, to care for the bodies and souls that God has entrusted to us. We share the views of all people of faith that life is sacred, but we have a clear commandment to protect the life of a pregnant person over a potential life, especially when we have the resources to do so.

While I am grateful that a crucial element of reproductive healthcare has been restored, I remain deeply concerned and troubled for those like me who are having trouble finding the legitimate information at a time of so much political division and deception. There is only one solution: we must pass Amendment 4 and enshrine reproductive rights in our constitution to ensure no pregnant person, or doctor, is prevented from accessing the healthcare and resources necessary to protect their own lives. Human life is sacred: it's time we made that the law of our land.