7 reactions to the death of the ‘father of the abortion pill’

Pro-life and pro-choice advocates reacted to the death of the “father of the abortion pill,” Étienne-Émile Baulieu, who died Friday at the age of 98 at his home in Paris. 

The French biochemist specialized in hormone research, The New York Times reported Saturday, but his work in the early 1980s in developing RU-486, or mifepristone, brought him into the public eye. Baulieu developed the drug in partnership with the French pharmaceutical company Roussel-Uclaf, where he served as an independent consultant. 

Baulieu seemed to think that the abortion drug would prevent women from dying from botched abortions, telling the journal Science in 1989, “RU-486 can save them.” The scientist pushed for the pill’s approval, both in France and abroad, according to the Times.

Get Our Latest News for FREE

Subscribe to get daily/weekly email with the top stories (plus special offers!) from The Christian Post. Be the first to know.

Over the years, pro-life advocates have raised concerns about abortion drugs ending the lives of unborn children and negatively impacting the health of pregnant women. Pro-life doctors have also spoken against the distribution of abortion drugs via mail, noting that a medical professional might not have had the chance to screen the pregnant woman for complications like an ectopic pregnancy. 

When asked about opposition to the abortion pill by The New Yorker in 2022, Baulieu replied, “Ideology and machismo, alas, weigh more heavily than rationality and scientific proof.” 

“A method that makes the termination of pregnancy less physically traumatic for women and less risky to their health has always been rejected by pro-lifers: what they really seek is to harm and punish women,” he said. 

Here are seven reactions from pro-life and pro-choice advocates to the death of the “father of the abortion pill.”