Texas Republicans push new bill to criminalize distribution of abortion pills

03/29/2025 / By Laura Harris

Texas Republicans introduced HB 5510 (Woman and Child Protection Act) to impose civil penalties on those involved in distributing abortion-inducing drugs to reinforce pro-life laws.
The bill bans manufacturing, possessing or distributing abortion pills, including mailing them or providing information on obtaining them. It also allows parents to sue for wrongful death of an “unborn child” via medication abortion.
Modeled after Texas’ SB 8 (2021), the law would let private citizens sue violators, making it one of the most aggressive state-level abortion restrictions.
Texas officials are cracking down on out-of-state organizations mailing abortion pills, exemplified by AG Ken Paxton’s lawsuit against a New York doctor who allegedly sent pills to a Texas resident.
Supporters argue abortion pills endanger women and evade accountability, while critics see it as an extreme measure limiting reproductive rights. A judge has already fined one out-of-state provider $100,000 for violating Texas law.

Texas Republicans have introduced legislation that will impose civil liability on anyone involved in distributing abortion-inducing drugs to stop these pills from weakening their pro-life laws.

House Bill 5510, dubbed the Woman and Child Protection Act, would prohibit the manufacturing, possession or distribution of abortion pills in Texas, as well as ban mailing, prescribing or providing information on how to obtain them. The bill also grants parents of an “unborn child” the right to sue for wrongful death if an abortion occurs via medication, regardless of marital status.

Republican state Rep. Jeff Leach, the lead author of the proposed law, argued that abortion pills endanger women and evade accountability.

“These drugs not only take the lives of innocent children but also abandon their mothers to trauma and suffering, all while their exploiters remain immune from accountability. This bill ensures that those responsible for injury and death from abortion drugs can be held liable, offering justice for women and their children. Rest assured, Texas will lead the nation in defending women and unborn children from exploitation and HB 5510 is a crucial step to doing just that,” Leach said.

If passed, the law would mark one of the most aggressive state-level efforts to enforce abortion restrictions through civil lawsuits, following the model of Texas’ controversial SB 8 (2021), which empowered private citizens to sue abortion providers.

Texas officials have been grappling with out-of-state providers and organizations mailing abortion pills to their residents

The legislation comes as Texas officials grapple with out-of-state providers and organizations mailing abortion pills into the state, allowing individuals to terminate pregnancies privately despite Texas’ strict abortion laws.

In December, Attorney General Ken Paxton sued a New York-based abortion provider for allegedly shipping abortion drugs into Texas. (Related: Louisiana grand jury indicts New York doctor and company for prescribing abortion pills to pregnant minor.)

“Dr. Margaret Daley Carpenter, a New York doctor and founder of the Abortion Coalition for Telemedicine, unlawfully provided a Collin County resident with abortion-inducing drugs that ended the life of an unborn child and resulted in serious complications for the mother, who then required medical intervention,” Paxton’s office stated in a press release.

Paxton’s office noted that Texas law prohibits physicians from prescribing abortion-inducing drugs via mail, courier or telehealth services unless they hold a valid Texas medical license. The office said Carpenter knowingly violated these laws by prescribing the medication despite lacking authorization to practice telemedicine in Texas.

“In this case, an out-of-state doctor violated the law and caused serious harm to this patient. This doctor prescribed abortion-inducing drugs, unauthorized, over telemedicine – causing [the woman] to end up in the hospital with serious complications. In Texas, we treasure the health and lives of mothers and babies and this is why out-of-state doctors may not illegally and dangerously prescribe abortion-inducing drugs to Texas residents,” Paxton said in a separate statement.

Judge Bryan Gantt of the 219th District Court ordered Carpenter to stop sending abortion pills into Texas and imposed a $100,000 fine.

Learn more about abortion policies around the world at Abortions.news.

Watch this clip from MSNBC reporting on the criminalization of so-called “emergency abortions” in Idaho.

This video is from the NewsClips channel on Brighteon.com.