Comstock Act 1873

Subject : International Relations

Section: Msc

Concept :

A 19th century “anti-vice” law is at the center of a new court ruling that threatens access to the leading abortion drug in the U.S.
Dormant for a half-century, the Comstock Act has been revived by anti-abortion groups and conservative states seeking to block the mailing of mifepristone, the pill used in more than half of U.S. abortions.

Comstock Act

Originally passed in 1873 and named for an anti-vice crusader, the Comstock Act was intended to prohibit the mailing of contraceptives, “lewd” writings and any “instrument, substance, drug, medicine, or thing” that could be used in an abortion.
The law’s scope has been repeatedly narrowed by federal courts and Congress, which eliminated the reference to contraceptives in the 1970s. And the federal government hasn’t enforced the law since the 1930s, according to legal experts.

Current Issue over the law

The law was essentially dormant in the 50 years after Roe v. Wade established a federal right to abortion. And until the FDA loosened its requirements on mifepristone in 2021, there was no real way to enable abortion through the mail.
But Rachel Rebouché of Temple University’s law school says anti-abortion groups — emboldened by the Supreme Court decision overturning of Roe — have seized on Comstock to try and shut off the flow of abortion drugs.

Medical Abortion

Medication abortion is a regimen of pills women can take at home, a method increasingly used around the world.
Mifepristone, blocks a hormone called progesterone that is necessary for a pregnancy to continue.
Misoprostol, brings on uterine contractions.
Mifepristone, used along with misoprostol, is the most commonly used method of abortion in the US