NY Doctor Indicted By Louisiana For Prescribing Abortion Pill

SEE UPDATE: Arrest Warrant Issued For NY Doctor Who Prescribed Abortion Pills

NEW YORK — A Hudson Valley doctor is facing legal action from a second state for providing tele-medicine abortion care to a Louisiana woman.

Officials reacted swiftly to condemn today's felony grand jury indictment, and vowed to protect any and all New York doctors who legally provide medical care, including abortion care.

"Earlier today, a New York doctor was indicted in Louisiana for using telemedicine to prescribe abortion medication to a patient," Gov. Kathy Hochul said. "That’s right: a doctor is being prosecuted for providing basic health care to her patient."

New York's top law enforcement official described the decision by Louisiana prosecutors to pursue charges in stark terms.

"Abortion care is health care. The criminalization of abortion care is a direct and brazen attack on Americans' bodily autonomy and their right to reproductive freedom," New York Attorney General James said in a fiery statement. "This cowardly attempt out of Louisiana to weaponize the law against out-of-state providers is unjust and un-American. We will not allow bad actors to undermine our providers’ ability to deliver critical care. Medication abortion is safe, effective, and necessary, and New York will ensure that it remains available to all Americans who need it."

Grand jurors at the District Court for the Parish of West Baton Rouge issued the indictment against Ulster County physician Margaret Carpenter, charging her with criminal abortion by means of abortion-inducing drugs.

According to the AP, the case appears to be the first time criminal charges have been pursued against a doctor accused of sending abortion pills to another state, since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022.

Carpenter was sued by the Texas attorney general in December in similar circumstances for sending pills to that state. That case does not involve criminal charges.

Gov. Hochul said while the news today from Louisiana was unfortunate, it was not wholly unanticipated.

"We always knew that overturning Roe v. Wade wasn’t the end of the road for anti-abortion politicians," the governor said. "That’s why I worked with the Legislature to pass nation-leading laws to protect providers and patients. It’s more critical than ever for states to step up and protect reproductive freedom — and I’ll never back down from this fight.”