AG Kris Kobach says Walgreens abortion pill effort violates Kansas law, despite court stay
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Attorney General Kris Kobach said in a letter to Walgreens executives that he would "not hesitate" to enforce Kansas law in opposition to the company's plans to offer the abortion pill mifepristone through the mail.
The law Kobach cited, however, is the state's ban on telemedicine abortions, which was blocked by the Kansas Court of Appeals in November. It is unclear how that ruling would affect Kobach's ability to crack down on Walgreens.
When asked how the blocked law would affect enforcement, Kobach spokesperson John Milburn referred back to the letter and said the state and federal laws remained on the books.
Both Walgreens and CVS, the nation's two largest pharmacies, said earlier this year that they would petition the Food and Drug Administration to certify them to distribute mifepristone, both in stores and through the mail.
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The letter comes days after 20 Republican attorneys general sent similar correspondence to executives at Walgreens and CVS.
The back-and-forth underscores how abortion pills are becoming a larger touchpoint after the U.S. Supreme Court decision striking down Roe v. Wade last summer.
Anti-abortion doctors have sued the FDA in federal court, seeking to pull mifepristone from the market.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Justice issued a legal opinion that the abortion pill could be mailed, even to states that have banned abortion, provided the sender does not intend for the recipient to violate the law.
But in Kobach's message, he argued the effort violates federal law, pointing to a statute that bars mailing any article intended or designed to produce an abortion.
He threatened to file a suit under the Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, which allows private individuals damaged by a "racketeer" to file a civil suit in state or federal court.
RICO primarily has been used to target organized crime and a civil suit must prove the existence of an enterprise and that the individuals named in a lawsuit worked with the enterprise to engage in racketeering.
"President Biden is beholden to the country’s most extreme pro-abortion voices, who consistently advocate for expanding the abortion regime without any consideration of legality or even women’s safety," Kobach wrote. "But nothing requires you to join him. The law says what it says. I encourage you to follow it.”
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Walgreens attempt to mail abortion pill in Kansas is uncertain
Earlier this year, the FDA allowed pharmacies to dispense abortion pills, provided they came from a certified health provider, opening the door for a potentially major expansion in access. The two pharmacy giants say they will only do so in states where it would be legal.
It is unclear if Walgreens will seek to distribute mifepristone in Kansas in light of the legal uncertainty regarding the future of the state's telemedicine abortion ban. A spokesperson said they couldn't speculate on whether the drug would be filled in Kansas.
"We intend to become a certified pharmacy under the program, however we fully understand that we may not be able to dispense Mifepristone in all locations if we are certified under the program," Fraser Engerman, a spokesperson for Walgreens, said in an email.
Kobach's anti-abortion viewpoints were a key issue during his victorious campaign for the job last year.
He has said he will ask the Kansas Supreme Court to reconsider a 2019 decision that preserved state-level constitutional protections for abortion rights in light of the overturning of Roe.
And Kobach has urged lawmakers to overhaul the selection process for justices on the Supreme Court, a move that could prompt the re-litigation of the 2019 case.
This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Kris Kobach says sending abortion pills by mail is illegal in Kansas
