SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem has issued an executive order to restrict access to abortion medication and make it clear that medicine-induced abortions fall within state law requiring an in-person consultation with a physician.
The Republican governor directed the state Department of Health that abortion-inducing drugs can only be prescribed or dispensed by a state-licensed physician after an in-person examination.
“The Biden Administration is continuing to overstep its authority and suppress legislatures that are standing up for the unborn to pass strong pro-life laws. They are working right now to make it easier to end the life of an unborn child via telemedicine abortion. That is not going to happen in South Dakota,” said Governor Noem in a news release. “I will continue working with the legislature and my Unborn Child Advocate to ensure that South Dakota remains a strong pro-life state.”
Noem's order was made in anticipation that the Food and Drug Administration later this year will allow abortion medications to be dispensed through the mail or virtual pharmacies.
About 39% of abortions in South Dakota last year were done through medication.
News of Noem's executive order comes a week after Texas' new abortion law went into effect, forbidding abortions after six weeks.
