The reality of the abortion pill May 21, 2026By Katie Yoder OSV News Filed Under: Commentary, Respect Life Elizabeth Gillette still remembers seeing her baby’s body after swallowing the abortion pill more than a decade ago. “Locked in the bathroom, I experienced tremors, I experienced sweats, I started to vomit — and when the bleeding started, it was so profuse (that) there wasn’t enough towels or anything else to mop up the blood,” I watched her say at a congressional press conference held in March. “I felt in between my legs and pulled out a perfectly formed amniotic sac with my baby floating inside it with recognizable eyes, limbs and earbuds.” “In that moment,” Gillette adds, “I had to decide if I was going to throw my child in the trash or flush my child down the toilet.” I think about stories like Gillette’s when I see the abortion pill — the most common type of abortion in the United States — appear in the news. Most recently, the U.S. Supreme Court issued an order May 14 that allows women to continue to receive mifepristone, one of two drugs used in the abortion pill regimen, by mail. Several reports covering the new order described mifepristone as a safe medication. Not all women who take the abortion pill see their baby’s body, but Gillette’s experience points to the reality that abortion is an act that intentionally ends human life in the womb. It suggests that every pregnancy involves two lives — two bodies — even in the earliest stages. Life-affirming medical professionals agree. But first, here are the facts: The U.S. Food and Drug Administration first approved mifepristone, which is paired with another drug called misoprostol, for earlier abortions in 2000. Permitted for use through 10 weeks of gestation, the abortion pill goes by many names including chemical abortion, medication abortion or telemedicine abortion. Today, this type of abortion is responsible for nearly two-thirds of all clinician-provided abortions in the U.S., according to the Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive research institution that supports abortion. Hundreds of thousands of women consume it each year. Hundreds of thousands of unborn babies are no longer alive because of it each year. A board-certified OB-GYN describes how the abortion pill works in an illustrated video produced by national pro-life organization Live Action. Dr. Noreen Johnson, who performed more than 1,000 abortions before becoming a pro-life advocate, says the abortion pill’s two-step process begins when a woman swallows mifepristone. This drug blocks a hormone called progesterone. “When mifepristone blocks progesterone, the lining of the mother’s uterus breaks down, cutting off oxygen and vital nutrients to the embryo, who then dies inside the mother’s womb,” Johnson says in the video published in 2022. After 24 to 48 hours have passed, the woman takes a second drug, misoprostol, by inserting pills in her cheeks. “She will experience severe cramping, contractions and heavy bleeding to force the dead embryo out of her uterus,” Johnson says. “The process can be very intense and painful, and the bleeding contractions can last from a few hours to several days.” She adds that women might even see, like Gillette did, “the expelled embryo within the pregnancy sack.” This is the reality of a successful abortion: It always ends at least one life. And when we know that, perhaps we can also see that abortion demands a response. This is why thousands of pregnancy centers nationwide provide free services to pregnant and parenting women in need. This is why the Catholic Church accompanies pregnant and parenting women in need with its parish-based initiative, Walking with Moms in Need. While the Supreme Court orders it can still be delivered by mail, the abortion pill is not safe. The decision to take or avoid it determines whether or not a baby lives. read more commentary Mother Cabrini: First U.S. citizen canonized a saint dedicated life to New York’s Italian immigrants Question Corner: When does a priest promise celibacy in the ordination process? John Paul II and America ‘Magnifica Humanitas’ and AI: How Catholic social teaching affirms human dignity in digital world A Wasp on the Elevator Pope Leo’s first encyclical Copyright © 2026 OSV News Print
