Whitmer Requests Federal Clarity On Michiganders' Rights To Seek Reproductive Healthcare In Canada

(CBS DETROIT) -- Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is asking federal officials to clarify Michiganders' rights to cross the Canadian border to seek reproductive health care or prescription medication, including medication abortion.

In a letter to U.S. Department of Health Services Secretary Xavier Becerra and Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, Whitmer asks officials to ensure residents continue to have access to reproductive health care after the Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v. Wade.

Abortion is currently legal in the state after  Court of Claims Judge Elizabeth Gleicher granted a preliminary injunction, suspending the state's 1931 ban.

She also calls on the Food and Drug Administration and Customs and Border Protection to issue guidance that allows Michiganders to seek reproductive health care in Canada or to bring medications prescribed by a Canadian healthcare professional back to the U.S.

Officials say this is conflicting guidance from both departments about Americans' ability to bring medication from Canada to the United States.

"If that law takes effect, it will strip away the rights of more than 2.2 million women to make decisions about their own bodies and criminalize our healthcare providers who offer abortions," Whitmer said in the letter.

Last week, Whitmer urged the Michigan Supreme Court to consider her lawsuit on abortion rights, citing confusion among county prosecutors and medical providers on the current status of abortion in the state.

© 2022 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.