{"id":2620109,"date":"2026-06-27T20:56:00","date_gmt":"2026-06-28T00:56:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/op-ed-the-abortion-pill-in-american-water-outdated-testing-demands-updated-answers\/"},"modified":"2026-06-27T21:01:55","modified_gmt":"2026-06-28T01:01:55","slug":"op-ed-the-abortion-pill-in-american-water-outdated-testing-demands-updated-answers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/op-ed-the-abortion-pill-in-american-water-outdated-testing-demands-updated-answers\/","title":{"rendered":"Op-Ed: The Abortion Pill in American Water: Outdated Testing Demands Updated Answers"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">24<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fop-ed-the-abortion-pill-in-american-water-outdated-testing-demands-updated-answers%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2620109&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/dei-disaster-petition-circulating-within-secret-service-community-warns-of-potential-insider-threats\/\" title=\"DEI Crisis: Secret Service Petition Raises Concerns About &#039;Insider Threats\">article discusses concerns<\/a> regarding whether the abortion pill, specifically mifepristone, might be lowering fertility rates in the United States through contamination of drinking water. Currently, there is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/montana-plans-to-sue-over-federal-wolverine-delisting\/\" title=\"Montana to sue over federal wolverine delisting\">insufficient scientific evidence<\/a> to confirm this link, but due to significant changes in how the drug is used and disposed of-especially with more people taking it at home-it&#8217;s crucial to revisit the safety assessments made decades ago. The original environmental safety check in 1996 was based on limited data, which is outdated given the increased prevalence of the drug in modern times.<\/p>\n<p>Research shows that traces of mifepristone and similar drugs are present in wastewater at very low levels in the U.S., with some animal studies indicating possible reproductive effects at higher concentrations. Despite these findings, definitive proof of harm to humans in our water supply is lacking, and current levels are lower than those measured elsewhere globally. Nonetheless,experts argue that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) should update its safety assessments and conduct new studies at current levels to determine potential risks accurately.<\/p>\n<p>The article emphasizes that this is a <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >scientific issue deserving careful investigation<\/a>, rather than a political debate. Conducting new evaluations would help clarify whether the presence of mifepristone in water impacts fertility rates, providing facts rather than opinions. The call for reassessment aligns with existing EPA practices of monitoring numerous pharmaceuticals in water to protect environmental and public health.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><br \/>\n<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC \"-\/\/W3C\/\/DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional\/\/EN\" \"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/TR\/REC-html40\/loose.dtd\"><br \/>\n<?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><html><body><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_0)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>Could the abortion pill be lowering America\u2019s fertility rate through our drinking water?<\/p>\n<p>Right now, nobody really knows. Scientists haven\u2019t studied this closely enough to say for sure. And there are good reasons to study it now \u2014 better reasons than there were 10 years ago.<\/p>\n<p>In 2000, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved a drug called mifepristone, which is used for chemical abortions.<\/p>\n<p>Before approving it, the agency had done a safety check on the environment back in 1996. That check said the drug was safe to use and throw away, with no harm expected to the environment.<\/p>\n<p>That answer made sense at the time. Back then, this kind of abortion was rare. Most patients took the drug in a clinic, with a doctor close by.<\/p>\n<p>Things are very different today. By 2023, this type of abortion made up about 63 percent of all abortions done through <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/increasing-taxpayer-cost-of-migrants-health-care-in-illinois-raises-concerns\/\" title=\"Concerns arise as the cost of migrants&#039; healthcare in Illinois continues to rise, burdening taxpayers\">regular health care<\/a> in the U.S. That\u2019s far higher than in the past.<\/p>\n<p>At the same time, the rules around the drug have loosened. Patients used to have to pick it up in person. Now, they often don\u2019t. This means more people take the drug at home, which changes how the drug enters our water system.<\/p>\n<p>The 1996 safety check never planned for this. An old answer is only as good as the facts it was based on \u2014 and many of those facts have changed.<\/p>\n<p>Because so much has changed, it makes sense to update that 30-year-old safety check.<\/p>\n<p>This isn\u2019t about politics. It\u2019s normal, basic safety work. The EPA does this kind of review for many other chemicals already.<\/p>\n<p>Some people criticized a recent letter from a group of state attorneys general asking the Environmental Protection Agency to study this issue. They\u2019re right that the letter doesn\u2019t list any detailed studies. That\u2019s a fair criticism of the letter. But that doesn\u2019t mean the question itself is hollow.<\/p>\n<p>There IS real scientific research on this drug and water. It\u2019s worth looking at the actual science, not just the arguments on opposing political sides.<\/p>\n<p>Some studies have measured mifepristone and similar drugs in wastewater with reported levels in the nanograms-per-liter range.<\/p>\n<p>Scientists have also measured a broader effect called \u201canti-progestogenic activity,\u201d which captures the combined hormone-blocking effect of mifepristone and similar chemicals together.<\/p>\n<p>Some research has reported this combined effect at much higher levels in surface water in some areas, such as China and Australia. U.S. and European water tests of mifepristone have generally found far lower amounts.<\/p>\n<p>One <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/long-beach-hotel-fined-4-8-million-for-failing-to-rehire-staff-laid-off-due-to-covid-19\/\" title=\"Long Beach Hotel fined .8M for not rehiring COVID...19 laid...off staff.\">recent study looked<\/a> at adult female frogs, exposing them to mifepristone for 30 days. That study found a real effect compared to frogs that weren\u2019t exposed. At higher levels, the frogs laid fewer eggs. And only half of them successfully reproduced when paired with a mate.<\/p>\n<p>The study used concentrations similar to what\u2019s sometimes been measured in wastewater, so this isn\u2019t just a lab curiosity \u2014 it\u2019s evidence that reproduction can be affected in animals.<\/p>\n<p>None of this yet proves the drug is dangerous as it\u2019s currently found in U.S. tap water. The numbers from other countries are much higher than those found here. But this research does show the concern is real and serious \u2014 and not yet fully answered.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s worth knowing that asking to study this drug isn\u2019t unusual. The EPA is already working on a list of pharmaceutical chemicals to study in our water \u2014 374 different FDA-approved drugs that might show up in lakes, rivers, groundwater, or tap water. The agency already treats trace amounts of medicine in water as something worth checking, across the board.<\/p>\n<p>So adding mifepristone to that list isn\u2019t a special exception. It\u2019s simply asking that this one drug get the same kind of check the EPA is already giving hundreds of others.<br \/> It\u2019s not \u201cjust politics.\u201d If the EPA already checks hundreds of other drugs this way, it\u2019s tough to say mifepristone alone shouldn\u2019t get checked, too.<\/p>\n<p>A reasonable approach here is simple: update the obsolete 1996 safety check, run new studies at the levels actually found in U.S. water, and  the results \u2014 whatever they turn out to be.<\/p>\n<p>If the study finds that U.S. levels are too low to cause harm, that\u2019s a useful answer. It would settle an argument that right now is mostly happening through press releases and opinions, not facts. If the study finds something more worrying, that\u2019s important information too, either way.<\/p>\n<p>The EPA already studies hundreds of other drugs this same way. Doing the same for a drug whose use has changed considerably over time just makes sense.<\/p>\n<p>Whether the drop in America\u2019s fertility rate is connected, even partly, to this drug ending up in our water is a real question. It deserves a real, scientific answer \u2014 not just opinion and argument.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p><i><b>The views expressed in this opinion article are those of their author and are not necessarily either d or endorsed by the owners of this website. If you are interested in contributing an Op-Ed to The Western Journal, you can learn about our submission guidelines and process <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/submitop-ed\/\">here<\/a>.<\/b><\/i><\/p>\n<div style=\"background-color: #f7f7f7; color: #171717; display: flex;font-size: 16px;font-weight: 600;line-height: 1.5;margin: 24px 0;padding: 18px 20px 18px 30px;text-align: left;\">\n<div style=\"align-self: stretch;border-left: 3px solid #171717;flex-shrink: 0;padding-left: 20px;\"><\/div>\n<p><a style=\"text-decoration: none;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/\">Choose The Western Journal as your preferred source on Google and never miss reporting that defends truth, protects freedom, and advances Western civilization<\/a><\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey == typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts = { \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs = [ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i = 0; i < inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! 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Currently, it&#8217;s uncertain. More research is needed now than a decade ago, especially since usage and environmental impact have changed since the FDA approved it in 2000<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2620110,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Glass-of-water.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[4310,37167,81833,32068,36292],"class_list":["post-2620109","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-abortion","tag-healthcare-policy","tag-medical-testing","tag-public-health","tag-reproductive-rights"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Glass-of-water.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2620109","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2620109"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2620109\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2620118,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2620109\/revisions\/2620118"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2620110"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2620109"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2620109"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2620109"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}