Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey is taking aggressive legal action against the Planned Parenthood Federation of America. According to an announcement that was published by Attorney General Bailey, a lawsuit has been filed alleging that the organization is in violation of the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act. The basis of the suit claims that Planned Parenthood has been systematically providing misleading information regarding the safety of chemical abortions.
Attorney General Bailey has accused Planned Parenthood of equating the safety of the abortion drug to over-the-counter medications like Tylenol, despite what the office states are FDA findings and peer-reviewed studies that purportedly show a rate of serious adverse events in more than 4.5 percent of cases. The attorney general said, "The national Planned Parenthood organization is actively endangering the lives of women and girls across the country by spreading lies and disinformation about the powerful chemical abortion drug." He continued, claiming, "The facts are clear: more than 4.5 percent of women who take this dangerous drug end up in the emergency room, yet Planned Parenthood compares it to Tylenol."
As outlined in the legal petition, the attorney general is seeking more than $1.8 million in civil penalties. The suit also demands up to $1,000 in damages or restitution for every Missouri woman provided with abortion pills by Planned Parenthood within the past five years. It also calls for reimbursement to the state for emergency care that allegedly resulted from complications with the abortion drug. Furthermore, it seeks a court order to halt the continued promotion of what the attorney general terms as falsehoods by Planned Parenthood in Missouri.
In addition to the aforementioned demands, the lawsuit takes specific issue with Planned Parenthood's advertising. The petition argues, "Comparing the labeled use of one drug with the misuse of another in a safety claim is disingenuous." It also declares such comparisons to be illegal under Missouri law. "The lies must stop. We’re holding the national Planned Parenthood entity accountable for the lies it tells women in Missouri and across the nation," Attorney General Bailey concluded. These statements encapsulate the grounds on which the state of Missouri is building its case against Planned Parenthood, with Bailey fervently asserting that no organization is "above the law, not even Planned Parenthood."
