Abortions Can Kill Women, But The Media Refuses To Talk About The Risks—Why?

Women are constantly told surgical and chemical abortions are safe, despite their known risks. Even after Amber Thurman tragically died from complications from abortion pills that have been labeled as "completely safe," many media outlets are trying to shift the blame. Why?

The narrative that abortion pills are just a convenient solution ignores the real and potentially fatal risks. The people pushing these pills know the dangers, yet they keep promoting them without transparency. Medical complications like severe bleeding, infection, and incomplete abortions are downplayed, leaving women vulnerable.

Documented Risks of Abortion

Abortion, whether surgical or chemical, carries documented risks that are frequently downplayed or outright denied in mainstream discussions. Surgical abortion, although often portrayed as a routine procedure, involves risks such as heavy bleeding, uterine perforation, and infection. Some surgical abortions can even lead to severe complications requiring emergency medical intervention or result in long-term reproductive health issues. The invasive nature of the procedure requires more direct medical oversight, which helps mitigate some risks, but it does not eliminate them.

Tonya Reaves, a 24-year-old woman, died after a second-trimester surgical abortion at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Chicago. She suffered from uterine perforation and significant internal bleeding due to a delay in emergency treatment following the procedure. The tragic mishandling of her care brought scrutiny to the lax safety protocols in place at most abortion clinics.

In another horrifying instance, Lakisha Wilson, a 22-year-old from Ohio, died after a botched surgical abortion at a Cleveland clinic. She suffered a cardiac arrest due to severe blood loss. Similarly, Christin Gilbert, a 19-year-old with Down syndrome, died after a third-trimester abortion performed by Dr. George Tiller in Kansas, known for his enthusiasm for performing late-term abortions. Gilbert developed sepsis following the procedure, which was reportedly compounded by mismanagement of her care during and after the abortion. But most media outlets have either ignored the deaths of these women and countless others or deceptively shifted the blame.

Abortion Pills

Chemical abortion, commonly referred to as the abortion pill, involves a two-step drug regimen: mifepristone, which blocks the hormone progesterone, and misoprostol, which induces contractions to expel the pregnancy. The convenience of taking these pills at home is often sold as a safe alternative to surgical abortion, but the reality is far more concerning.

Documented risks of chemical abortions include severe cramping, heavy and prolonged bleeding, incomplete abortion, and infection. In cases like Amber Thurman’s, incomplete abortion can lead to sepsis, a life-threatening condition if not treated promptly. Telehealth and mail-order abortions exacerbate this risk, as follow-up care is inconsistent and often nonexistent.

Holly Patterson, a healthy 18-year-old from California, died after taking the abortion pill regimen (mifepristone and misoprostol). She developed a severe infection (Clostridium sordellii) that led to toxic shock syndrome. Her death brought national attention to the potential dangers of chemical abortions, particularly the risk of infection when fetal tissue is not completely expelled. However, in the wake of Thurman's death, many women's publications and abortion activists online have reverted to insisting that the pills come with no risks.

Tragically, another young woman, Vivian Tran from California, also died from a Clostridium sordellii infection after taking abortion pills. Her death, like Holly Patterson’s, raised serious concerns about the underreported risks of sepsis and toxic shock syndrome associated with chemical abortions.

Why the Silence?

The politically motivated, money-making push for widespread access and zero limitations—through telehealth, mail, and even self-management—means that women are often left without the immediate medical oversight they desperately need when something goes wrong. Clinics are not required to confirm that patients have safely expelled all fetal tissue, and follow-ups are inconsistent at best.

This isn’t just negligence; it’s dangerous. The abortion industry’s failure to fully inform women of these risks is costing lives. Even worse, media outlets frequently gloss over these dangers, framing abortions as low-risk while demonizing pro-life advocates who raise legitimate safety concerns.

Instead of addressing the real harm these pills can cause, the narrative focuses on political arguments, effectively hiding the life-threatening risks from public scrutiny, but don't women deserve to be fully informed about the risks of both surgical and chemical abortions so that they can make truly informed decisions about their health?

Instead of glossing over these risks to push for even more access, the conversation should shift towards ensuring that women have all the information necessary to make informed decisions.

The Need for Transparency and Accountability

These cases reveal a troubling pattern: While both surgical and chemical abortions are promoted as safe, the associated risks are downplayed, and the tragic outcomes are often underreported or minimized. Both types of abortion carry risks of severe bleeding, infection, incomplete procedures, and sometimes death.

And these tragic deaths are not just statistics; they are a call to action to prioritize women’s health and safety above political narratives and to hold the abortion industry and media accountable for their failures to disclose the true risks involved.

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