White House Considers Declaring National Emergency Over Abortion Pills

President Joe Biden’s White House is considering executive action to make abortion pills accessible nationwide despite state laws restricting the drug, according to Politico.

The administration may use executive power granted under the Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness (PREP) Act to declare a public health emergency to allow abortion providers and pharmacists to distribute chemical abortion pills, even in states where abortion is heavily restricted, according to Politico.

White House staffers prefer the PREP Act option, which would allow Biden to shield abortion providers from criminal prosecution, compared to other proposals, but they remain skeptical that the emergency actions could survive legal challenges in court. It is also unclear how long the order could last given that public health emergencies are temporary, according to Politico.