The parade of Trump nominees continued through the Senate last week — with four being confirmed by the full chamber. The president’s selection for secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., had a hearing before the Senate Finance Committee last Wednesday, where he acquitted himself fairly well, especially on the issues of life and abortion.

Kennedy deferred to President Trump’s position, which RFK Jr. went on to articulate, saying that he would serve at the pleasure of the president. There was one response to a question from Oklahoma Senator James Lankford (R) on the topic of mifepristone, the abortion pill that suggests medical follow-up is needed — and needed quickly. Kennedy said the president had not yet taken a detailed position on mifepristone but wanted Kennedy to look at the safety issues surrounding it. Now, that should not be a difficult task, because there are a host of issues related to that abortion drug.

But before delving into the medical and scientific aspects, it’s critical to consider the political realities. First, the Trump administration cannot claim to respect states’ rights to protect both unborn children and their mothers while retaining the Biden administration’s policy on mifepristone. Under the Biden administration, regulations were loosened, eliminating the requirement for in-person medical consultation. To facilitate this, the Department of Justice under Biden declared that the Comstock Act, which bans mailing abortion-related materials, did not extend to abortion pills.

Of course, more than 60% of abortions in the U.S. are — you guessed it — done through the abortion drug, often by pills mailed across state lines without proper medical evaluations. That practice runs directly counter to the Trump administration’s stated stance that abortion is a matter for the states.

On the medical side, adverse effects for women are notoriously difficult to quantify because the Obama-era FDA stopped reporting them. Nevertheless, independent data indicates serious risk. One study in the International Journal of Epidemiology and Public Health Research examined emergency department visits among Medicaid-eligible women in 17 states where the program covers abortion. It found a sharp rise in both the severity and frequency of these visits when abortion-inducing drugs were used.

There are also significant environmental concerns. Many state laws provide that fetal remains from surgical abortions are to be buried or cremated to avoid public health hazards with abortions. In a lot of cases, however, remains are flushed down the toilet. A February 2024 letter from FRC sent to Congress underscored how mifepristone can persist in blood, placental tissue, and the fetus itself. Because of this, the drug has been detected in wastewater, potentially harming wildlife and possibly making it more difficult for women of childbearing age to conceive or maintain a pregnancy because of tap water.

In light of these issues, the Trump administration should swiftly adopt a policy that aligns with its declaration that abortion belongs under state jurisdiction while also addressing pressing health and environmental concerns. Specifically, an immediate ban on the sale of abortion-inducing drugs by mail is essential. Such a move would respect the rights of states and be a step toward safeguarding women’s health and mitigating the environmental risks posed by chemical abortions.