by Liv Caputo, Florida Phoenix
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier filed a $354 million lawsuit Thursday against Planned Parenthood, accusing the reproductive organization of driving profits by “misleading” women into believing abortion drugs are safer than Tylenol.
Uthmeier is asking a circuit judge in Santa Rosa County to force Planned Parenthood, the nation’s largest reproductive health services clinic, to pay $350 million for violating the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act and an additional $4 million for breaking Florida’s racketeering statute, he claimed in the 37-page suit.
“Planned Parenthood and its Florida operations mislead women about the critical and undeniable risks of a chemical abortion by deceptively claiming these powerful drugs are less risky than everyday pain medication,” Uthmeier wrote. “This is no accident. Planned Parenthood profits from this deception.”
He referred to medical abortions, which involve ingesting two pills approved by the CDC through 10 weeks of pregnancy instead of undergoing an aspiration abortion. Medical abortions have accounted for roughly 68% of abortions in Florida so far this year, according to data provided by the Agency for Health Care Administration.
The Thursday lawsuit is the latest chapter in Florida’s agenda to severely restrict access to abortion. The GOP-dominated Legislature, with approval from Gov. Ron DeSantis, passed a 15-week abortion ban in 2022 that was further hamstringed by a 2023 six-week ban. That law was a top priority for the governor, who was attempting to set himself apart from Donald Trump — who’s been reticent on abortion — as he geared up for what would be a heated GOP presidential primary.
Uthmeier, who served as DeSantis’ chief of staff, also supported the administration as multiple state agencies leading up to the 2024 election urged Floridians to vote against a measure that would have enshrined abortion access in the state constitution.
Planned Parenthood didn’t immediately return a request for comment.
The lawsuit names four Planned Parenthood affiliates and claims their business is “booming,” accusing the industry of switching from mostly aspiration abortions to more medical ones because they’re “more profitable.”
Uthmeier’s case centers on Planned Parenthood’s popular line claiming that the abortion drugs are “Safer than Tylenol.” He calls this a “lie,” pointing out that there are no direct studies specifically comparing the safety of mifepristone and acetaminophen, the primary ingredient in Tylenol.
This is disputed by some medical groups like the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Medical Association, who joined a 2023 lawsuit arguing that the abortion pill’s safety profile is “on par” with pain killers like acetaminophen.
More than that, Uthmeier also claims that Planned Parenthood’s statement doesn’t take into account that more people use Tylenol, and that acetaminophen hospitalizations arise mostly from overdoses or misuse, he claims. He charges that Planned Parenthood’s has conspired to mislead women, violating both the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act and the Florida RICO Act.
By estimating that Planned Parenthood is responsible for roughly 35,000 medical abortions in the past two years, he asks the circuit court to impose a $10,000 fine under FDUTPA per abortion and to charge each Planned Parenthood affiliate with a $1 million civil penalty under the RICO Act.
This isn’t Tylenol’s first foray into pregnancy-related debates. In September, Health and Human Services Director Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., warned that Tylenol use during pregnancy is linked to autism. And although President Trump amplified these claims, urging pregnant women to “tough it out,” Tylenol representatives and scientists have rejected these claims.
“[Planned Parenthood] acted as an ongoing organization, formal or informal, with a common purpose of selling abortion to Florida women,” Uthmeier wrote.
Florida Phoenix is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Florida Phoenix maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Michael Moline for questions: info@floridaphoenix.com.
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