Biden admin “twisted” chemical abortion pill data, HHS Secy.

By: Lisa Bourne, originally published September 4, 2025, Pregnancy Help News

The Biden administration misrepresented data on chemical abortion pill mifepristone to obfuscate safety issues with the drug, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. said Thursday.

Kennedy appeared before the Senate Finance Committee where Oklahoma Sen. James Lankford asked him about ongoing FDA review of safety protocols for mifepristone. Kennedy confirmed that a review was progressing and said that in the process it was determined that the Biden administration had “twisted” the data on mifepristone’s safety.

“We’re getting data in all the time, new data that we’re reviewing, and we know that during the Biden administration, they actually twisted the data to bury one of the safety signals with a very high safety signal of around of 11%,” Kennedy said.

“So, we’re going to make sure that that doesn’t happen anymore,” he added. “We’re producing honest science and gold standard science on that.”

FDA review of mifepristone is hotly contested, with pro-life advocates hoping the federal agency  will reinstate  the drug’s safety standards and otherwise act to protect women, while  abortion proponents   claim   mifepristone  is  as safe as Tylenol  and  argue that   safety regulations  for the drug  impede access .

Mifepristone  is the first of two drugs in a chemical abortion, the abortion method that has surpassed surgical abortion to be  the most common   in the U.S.  through  rampant   ease of access  and minimal oversight. The drug  has been shown  to be  four times more dangerous  than surgical abortion.

A groundbreaking analysis released in April of 865,000 insurance claims of women who were prescribed mifepristone abortions from 2017 to 2023 found that mifepristone is  22   time s more dangerous  than  previously recognized  in FDA data. The report by conservative think tank Ethics and Public Policy Center (EPPC) said that  nearly 11% of women  experience sepsis, infection, hemorrhaging, or another serious adverse event within 45 days of taking the drug.

The FDA  uses is a drug safety program known as REMS (Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies) for medications “ with serious safety concerns ” to make certain the benefits of the drug outweigh its risks. Of the 20,000+ prescription drugs approved by the FDA, just 74 drugs have been deemed dangerous enough to warrant a REMS restriction – and one of those is mifepristone.

Mifepristone was first  approved in 2000  in a process that some  contend  was hurried ,  at   odds with  science and law, and pervaded by politics.

The FDA  then loosened its own safety standards on the drug in 2016 under President Barack Obama  and 2021  under President Joe Biden. Part of this reduction of safety standards  has included  eliminating the requirement that  abortion providers report non-fatal adverse events   to the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System.

The safeguards  for  mifepristone   removed by the FDA over   the last nine years  include an initial in-person doctor visit to screen for ectopic pregnancy and other serious conditions, and a follow-up visit to check for life-threatening complications, such as internal bleeding and infection.

The FDA then further lessened its REMS requirements for chemical abortion drugs, permitting them   to be dispensed   by pharmacies and delivered   via mail . The Biden administration made access to the drug  without in-person dispensing  permanent in 2023.

FDA data shows that  at least 32 women have died  following mifepristone use between the drug’s approval in 2000 and 2022.

The head of the largest network of pregnancy help organizations in the U.S. said that Kennedy’s admission before the Senate Finance Committee was not surprising and questioned whether the Trump administration would correct the FDA data for the good of women.

“It is no surprise to learn an abortion politician has intentionally twisted data,” said Jor-El Godsey, president of Heartbeat International. “They’ve been doing this for years with the other researched aspect of abortion by denying the negative effects on women.”

“The bigger question,” Godsey said, “is once finding it, will this administration have the courage to correct the analysis and act to protect the public?”

Heartbeat International’s Director of Government Relations noted the Biden administration’s handling of the FDA data on mifepristone put women at risk.

“We’re sad but not surprised to learn that the Biden FDA deliberately twisted the data and turned a blind eye to details about how abortion drugs have hurt women,” Jessica Prol Smith said.

Heartbeat International had submitted an amicus brief in  FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine , the Supreme Court case where a  group   of pro-life doctors and organizations had challenged the FDA’s decision to remove its  health and safety  measures for mifepristone, SCOTUS ultimately  ruling  that the doctors did not have standing – but  upholding their conscience rights  and   refraining from ruling on the merits of the case .

Heartbeat had  argued in its brief that  the FDA put women at risk by lowering the standard of care for treating pregnant mothers when it relaxed its own rules for chemical abortion drugs.

Heartbeat International  submitted an amicus brief  in  GenBioPro v. Raynes  as well, in support of the state of West Virginia’s right  to regulate chemical abortion pills .

Among the more minor side effects  possible with mifepristone   are cramping, nausea, and vomiting.  Severe complications  that require immediate medical attention include extremely heavy bleeding, severe infection, and retained tissue.

Aside from the risks, many chemical abortions result in the mother left to deliver her deceased child at home or  in other circumstances  without medical oversight, and quite often women have not been prepared for this.

Pro-life concerns   also  include  the likelihood for  the drug   to be used  in  human trafficking  and  other   situations   involving   abuse  or  coercion .

Kennedy said earlier this year on the day of his confirmation as HHS Secretary that President Donald Trump had  asked him to study the safety of mifepristone . In May following release of the EPPC study Kennedy said the FDA  should change the label on mifepristone  and perform a top-to-bottom review of the drug.

FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary had said during his confirmation hearing in March that he would take a “ solid, hard look ” at the data on mifepristone. After  stating in April  he had no plans to take action on mifepristone Makary confirmed in June the FDA would  conduct a review of mifepristone .

During the Sept. 4 Senate Finance Committee hearing, Kennedy pledged to keep Lankford and Montana Sen. Steve Daines apprised of the FDA review.

Daines had called the claims that mifepristone is as safe as Tylenol “misleading” and “very harmful,” and questioned Kennedy about reinstating the in-person prescribing requirement.

Prol Smith praised the pro-life lawmakers and called on the FDA to protect women in keeping with the agency’s purpose.

“We’re grateful to see pro-life Senators Daines and Lankford providing oversight, and we join them in asking this FDA to do its job,” she said. “We know that health research and policy seem constantly controversial. But American women simply deserve better than the lies and half-truths they’ve gotten from abortion advocates who happen to hold government jobs.” 

Lisa Bourne is Managing Editor of Pregnancy Help News and Content Writer for Heartbeat International.

Image: HHS Sec. Robert F. Kennedy/Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America Facebook.

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