The continued efforts by blue states to legally stop women from being able to change their mind and save their unborn babies after starting a chemical abortion shows that so-called “reproductive freedom” has never been about helping women or enabling choice.
U.S. District Court Judge Daniel Domenico has permanently protected the right of a Catholic healthcare clinic in Colorado to provide treatment to women seeking to reverse the effects of chemical abortion.
In the case Bella Health and Wellness v. Weiser, the clinic challenged a Colorado law that prohibited medical professionals from offering abortion pill reversal (APR), a process that provides progesterone infusions for women who take mifepristone, the first pill used in a two-pill abortion regimen, but who change their minds and want to continue their pregnancies.
The court had issued a temporary injunction against the law in 2023. On Aug. 1, that ruling was made permanent, allowing Bella Health & Wellness to continue providing care to women seeking to stop the effects of a medication abortion.
With the court’s ruling, Bella Health can keep serving patients who come to the clinic hoping to preserve their pregnancies after beginning the abortion process. Mifepristone blocks the absorption of progesterone, slowly starving the child of this vital hormone needed for continued development and survival over a three to four day period; APR injects a flood of progesterone that effectively overpowers the power of Mifepristone. The success of the treatment is contingent on how quickly the treatment begins after the abortion pill is taken.
In 2023, Colorado lawmakers passed a law criminalizing the provision of APR, classifying it as unprofessional conduct. Physicians who offered the treatment risked losing their medical licenses. The law sparked an immediate backlash from pro-life groups, medical professionals, and legal experts who argued that it not only limits patient choice but could violate free speech and conscience protections for doctors.
At the center of the controversy is a provision in the law that declares offering APR to be outside the bounds of accepted medical practice. Pro-life supporters say that’s a political judgment, not a scientific one.
“This law is not about protecting women—it’s about denying them the right to change their minds,” said Dr. Christina Francis, CEO of the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists. “Progesterone is a common and safe treatment used in pregnancy care. It’s absurd that Colorado is treating it like a threat.”
The Colorado Medical Board initially agreed to pause enforcement of the law while it reviewed the medical evidence. But after months of internal debate and public pressure, the board issued a split decision, refusing to endorse the treatment as standard practice but also declining to label it definitively unsafe. Despite the ambiguity, the ban has remained in effect, and most physicians in the state have steered clear of offering APR out of fear of prosecution or loss of licensure.
The legal limbo has created confusion for patients and providers alike. Pro-life clinics in Colorado removed APR information from their websites and national hotlines referring women to APR providers were forced to omit Colorado from their services.
The Colorado law is part of a broader trend in Democrat-led states to block access to APR through various legal tactics, though they have been thwarted in these attempts by federal judges. In New York, Attorney General Letitia James sued pro-life organizations in 2024, accusing them of consumer fraud for promoting abortion pill reversal.
“Many women regret their abortions, and some change their minds after taking the first abortion drug and want to try to save their unborn babies’ lives. They should be allowed to hear about this option and make that choice,” said Caroline Lindsay, senior counsel for Alliance Defending Freedom, which represents pro-life pregnancy centers affected by the case.
“Right now, women in New York have access to information about safe and effective supplemental progesterone through their local pregnancy centers, but the attorney general is trying to limit women’s choices by taking that access away. The First Amendment prohibits such censorship and makes clear that Letitia James can’t deny women the opportunity to hear about this potentially life-saving option,” she added.
James’s efforts have been blocked by two different federal judges, but that hasn’t stopped other states, including Vermont and Massachusetts, from exploring similar legal strategies. Some are moving to classify APR as a form of false advertising or unlicensed medical practice, while others are seeking to codify bans through legislation or medical board rulings.
Despite these efforts, the number of women seeking the treatment is growing, according to pro-life advocacy groups. Heartbeat International, which operates a 24-hour hotline for women seeking reversal, reports more than 4,500 successful reversals since 2012.
Abortion rights advocates point to a 2020 study that was halted early over safety concerns, arguing the evidence for APR’s effectiveness is lacking.
But pro-life proponents argue that the study’s flaws and small sample size make its conclusions unreliable. They also note that progesterone has long been used in fertility and miscarriage treatments without controversy. What’s more, the judge in this case pointed out in his ruling that Colorado fully supports the use of progesterone for boys and men “in the context of gender-affirming care.”
The cofounders of Bella Health and Wellness celebrated the court’s ruling and say that they will continue to live out the statement expressed when the case was initially filed.
“We founded Bella because we believe that the miracle of life is worth protecting at every stage and in every circumstance,” said Dede Chism and Abby Sinnett. “Under our care, mothers who choose life have access to a safe treatment that increases the chances they will give birth to healthy babies. I pray that we will be able to continue this life-saving ministry to women who come to us in need of help.”
The court’s ruling in favor of Bella Health and Wellness is a reaffirmation of the Christian conviction that every life is sacred and that God’s mercy extends even into the most desperate moments of human decision. In a culture where abortion is often portrayed as irreversible and final, the ability to offer abortion pill reversal serves as a lifeline, both physically and spiritually. It provides hope for women who realize, often within hours, that they made a tragic mistake, proclaiming that regret does not have to lead to despair.
Scripture teaches that we are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14), and that God knows us even in the womb. When a woman changes her mind and chooses life, she participates in a sacred reversal — not just of a medical process but of a narrative that says abortion is the only way out.
The attempt by states like Colorado, New York, and others to ban or criminalize this life-saving option reveals a deeper spiritual blindness. These policies deny women the right to change their mind and choose life after they have already been told they had the right to choose death.
Christians must recognize what’s at stake. This is not just about politics or medicine. It is about whether we will be a society that offers redemption or one that enforces finality with no room for grace.
Bella Health’s ministry is a living witness to the Gospel, showing that life can be restored, that forgiveness is possible, and that Christ offers healing even after our worst decisions. As this battle continues across the nation, believers must pray, speak, and act to defend the unborn and uphold the truth that no one is beyond the reach of God’s mercy.
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