Ken Paxton sues New York doctor for prescribing abortion pills in Texas

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Friday sued a New York doctor for allegedly breaking state law by prescribing medication for abortions to Texans through telehealth appointments.

The lawsuit faces a tough legal challenge because New York has a shield law that protects doctors from prosecutions and investigations in other states if they prescribe abortion medication. But both surgical and medication abortions are illegal in Texas.

Paxton accused New York physician Margaret Daley Carpenter of prescribing and sending abortion medication in a telehealth appointment to a 20-year-old pregnant woman in Collin County, Texas. The drugs later caused an "adverse event" that resulted in the patient needing a medical abortion.

The patient was allegedly sent two boxes of abortion medication and instructions on how to administer it. The two boxes were of mifepristone, which stops the pregnancy from continuing and misoprostol, which causes cramping and bleeding to empty the uterus, according to The Hill. 

The patient allegedly started to bleed heavily in July and asked the father of the unborn baby for a ride to the hospital, where the father was told the mother "was experiencing a hemorrhage or heavy bleeding as she ‘had been’ nine weeks pregnant,” according to the lawsuit.

It is not clear whether the mother had any lasting issues from the abortion.

Paxton is asking the court for an injunction that bans Carpenter from providing abortion care to patients in Texas, and for her to pay at least $100,000 for every violation of Texas state law. It is not clear how many times she violated the law.

New York Attorney General Letitia James promised to protect the doctor from prosecution in a statement.

“Abortion is, and will continue to be, legal and protected in New York. As other states move to attack those who provide or obtain abortion care, New York is proud to be a safe haven for abortion access,” James said. “We will never cower in the face of intimidation or threats.”  

Misty Severi is an evening news reporter for Just the News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.