A leading pro-life organization has formally threatened to sue the Food and Drug Administration, accusing the agency of failing to conduct required environmental testing of the abortion drug mifepristone despite potential risks to the waterways and wildlife. Students for Life of America (SFLA), an anti-abortion advocacy group, filed a notice of intent to sue the FDA on Thursday, hours before Dr. Heidi Overton is scheduled to appear before the Senate for her confirmation hearing to lead the agency.
The notice says that after the FDA approved mifepristone in 2000, it never consulted two wildlife protection agencies about the drug's possible harmful effects on federally protected species, which the group argues violated the Endangered Species Act. "We expect these environmental concerns to be taken seriously. Overton is aware of these concerns.
Or we expect to see the Trump FDA in court. That's where this will end," SFLA President Kristan Hawkins told Fox News Digital in an interview on Wednesday. PRO-LIFE LEADER SOUNDS ALARM AFTER DOCTOR GETS 6 MONTHS FOR FORCING ABORTION PILLS ON GIRLFRIEND Hawkins said the FDA now has 60 days to respond to SFLA's notice before a lawsuit is filed.
Prior to the notice, the group had filed 11 citizen petitions to the agency urging action. In response to one of those petitions on Jan. 15, 2025 — five days before President Donald Trump began his second term — the FDA rejected SFLA's legal argument, saying it was not required to consult with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service or the National Marine Fisheries Service before approving mifepristone.
The SFLA notice cites six studies, four of which did not examine whether mifepristone was present in environmental water samples, to argue the drug may pose environmental risks warranting further federal review. Among the studies cited is a recent paper published in Issues in Law & Medicine, which reported anti-progesterone activity in water samples from three U.S. cities. HAWLEY URGES DOJ PROBE INTO ABORTION PILL MAKER OVER SAFETY CONCERNS Because mifepristone blocks progesterone receptors — preventing the hormone needed to sustain a pregnancy from doing its job — SFLA argues the findings show the drug has made it into the U.S. water supply.
"Where do all the babies go in chemical abortions?" Hawkins said. "If we're talking 600,000 to 700,000 abortions a year being induced with chemical abortion pills, where are they happening? She doesn't go to a facility to complete the abortion.
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