Ombudsman supports Health NZ in denying women permission to save their baby with abortion pill reversal!

Media Release 10 June 2025

Right to Life grieves with those women who change their minds, and are prevented from saving their baby from being killed in an early medical abortion.

Right to Life laid a complaint with the Ombudsman in 2023 against Health NZ, for declining to change the Abortion Clinical Guidelines to advise that the early medical abortion procedure can be discontinued and reversed through the Abortion Pill Reversal protocol [APR] and the failure to provide evidence that the APR Protocol is unsafe and ineffective.

Chief Ombudsman, John Allen, advised Right to Life in his letter of 15 May 2025, that he did not believe that Health NZ had acted unreasonably by refusing to change the Abortion Clinical Guidelines, to advise that the early medical abortion procedure can be discontinued and reversed through the APR protocol with progesterone.

We were also disappointed that as evidence of the effectiveness and safety of the protocol, he did not accept the birth of more than 6,000 babies internationally following the reversal of an early medical abortion, reported by Heartbeat International Progesterone has been used successfully for more than 50 years to save unborn children in pregnancies threatened by miscarriage.

Evidence was given to the Ombudsman that more than 6,000 babies had been safely born internationally since 2012, after Early Medical Abortions were reversed with Progesterone which had a 64 to 68 per cent success rate.

Right to Life believes that women have an absolute right to change their mind about abortion, to choose life for their child and discontinue an abortion, as it should be their choice. The Code of Health and Disability Services Consumers' Rights states: (7) “Every consumer has the right to refuse services and to withdraw consent to services”.

In a media release of 11th July 2024 , Health NZ threatened doctors with prosecution, if they prescribed Progesterone to reverse an EMA, also for those doctors who dare to encourage women to do so. On conviction a fine up to $10,000 or six months imprisonment could be imposed. It would be a day of shame if a doctor is sent to prison for saving the life of a child by using this reversal protocol.

Right to Life believes Health NZ, which funds and promotes the abortion industry, contracts out the killing of unwanted unborn with its Decide National Abortion Telehealth Service, is seeking to protect the abortion industry which gets paid for dead babies, not live babies.

Right to Life is concerned that the provisional total of 11,285 women who sought an early medical abortion in NZ in 2024, were not advised that they had a right to discontinue the procedure after taking Mifepristone, before taking the second abortion drug Misoprostol.

Right to Life will not rest until Health NZ recognises that women have a right to stop and reverse a medical abortion, after taking Mifepristone and before taking Misoprostol.

Ken Orr,

Spokesperson,

Right to Life New Zealand Inc.