• Louisiana’s Republican-controlled House passed a bill that would classify abortion pills as a controlled dangerous substance, subjecting their possession and distribution to hefty criminal penalties. [NBC News, CNN, Economic Times, Daily Caller, Common Dreams, The Hill]
  • The bill would make it a crime to produce, distribute, or possess abortion pills like mifepristone and misoprostol without a prescription, punishable by up to five years in prison. [NBC News, CNN, Economic Times, Daily Caller]
  • The bill has raised concerns among doctors and advocates, who argue it could criminalize the standard medical practice of prescribing abortion pills and restrict access to safe abortion care. [NBC News, Economic Times, MSNBC]
  • Republican Rep. Danny McCormick, who sponsored the bill, argued it would protect women’s health and safety by regulating the distribution of abortion pills. [NBC News, Daily Caller]
  • The bill has drawn criticism from Democrats and abortion rights advocates, who argue it is an unconstitutional attempt to restrict access to abortion. [CNN, The Hill]
  • In a separate development, a Republican lawmaker in Louisiana said he would vote against his own bill aimed at increasing security along the U.S.-Mexico border, citing concerns about its potential impact on legal immigration. [Newsweek]
  • Louisiana lawmakers also advanced a bill that would require public schools to display the Ten Commandments in classrooms, a move criticized by some as a violation of the separation of church and state. [Newsweek]

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