Photo: Carl Lokko / iStock / Getty Images
Louisiana has issued an arrest warrant for a California doctor accused of mailing abortion pills to a woman in the state, highlighting the ongoing legal battle between states with abortion bans and those protecting telemedicine providers. The warrant, issued in 2024, is part of a larger effort by anti-abortion activists and states to target telemedicine abortions, which now account for one in four abortions in the United States.
According to People, the warrant was revealed in court documents filed in a lawsuit aiming to reinstate in-person dispensing requirements for mifepristone, a drug used in medication abortions. Louisiana bans nearly all abortions and is seeking to join a federal lawsuit to limit access to mifepristone.
The case involves a Louisiana woman, Rosalie Markezich, who stated that her boyfriend ordered mifepristone and misoprostol from Dr. Remy Coeytaux without her consent. Markezich claims she wanted to keep her pregnancy but was coerced into taking the pills. The Louisiana attorney general, Liz Murrill, expressed hope that the Trump administration would roll back rules expanding telemedicine abortion access.
Dr. Coeytaux has faced multiple legal challenges, including a lawsuit in Texas and a cease-and-desist order. Similar actions have been taken against Dr. Margaret Carpenter, a New York-based doctor accused of mailing abortion pills to Texas and Louisiana. Legal experts anticipate the U.S. Supreme Court may need to resolve these interstate legal conflicts over abortion laws.