Nancy Pelosi: “I rise to oppose the Coburn amendment to the Agriculture Appropriations bill. I strongly disagree with this amendment…”

“I rise to oppose the Coburn amendment to the Agriculture Appropriations bill. I strongly disagree with this amendment because it would block the Food and Drug Administration from testing, developing, or approving any drug that would induce abortion, including RU-486. The Coburn amendment would limit the development of the next generation of safer, more effective contraceptives and this is wrong. Women in America have a right to choose. We must protect this right. The goal of this Congress should be to reduce the number of abortions, protect the right of women to choose, and to make necessary medical choices safe and legal. It is wrong for Congress to tell the FDA to approve a particular drug or to disapprove one. Instead, it is the FDA's mission to decide whether a drug is 'safe and effective.' The Coburn amendment would make this decision for the FDA and substitute Congress' judgement over the judgement of medical professionals. We must remember that RU-486 is a product proven to be medically safe. After extensive French and United States clinical trials, the FDA has determined that it is safe and effective for an early medical abortion. For about 20 years RU-486 has been available to Europe's women. The effect of this amendment is to ban RU-486 which can be used for a nonsurgical abortion. For women for whom surgical abortion poses risks or is otherwise inappropriate, the Coburn amendment unconstitutionally restricts the right to choose.”