Get the Facts: 1873 Comstock Act used in abortion pill decision
Fact-check shows how federal judge in Texas used century-and-a-half-old law to order halt to mifepristone access
Fact-check shows how federal judge in Texas used century-and-a-half-old law to order halt to mifepristone access
Fact-check shows how federal judge in Texas used century-and-a-half-old law to order halt to mifepristone access
A federal judge鈥檚 decision overturning the Food and Drug Administration鈥檚 decades-old approval of a pill widely used in medical abortions relied, in part, on a century-and-a-half-old law called the Comstock Act.
Enacted in 1873, the law 鈥� not enforced in decades 鈥� prohibited the mailing of contraceptives, 鈥渓ewd鈥� writings and any 鈥渋nstrument, substance, drug, medicine or thing鈥� that could be used in an abortion.
Watch our story above to 鈥楪et the Facts鈥� on the Comstock Act.
- Watch our 鈥楪et the Facts鈥� story on whether conservative Supreme Court justices promised to not overturn Roe v. Wade during their confirmation hearings.
Mark Albert is the chief national investigative correspondent for the Hearst Television National Investigative Unit, based in Washington D.C. Wendy Wilk, , and David Barcenas contributed to this report.
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