A Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee hearing on abortion drug safety turned into a flashpoint Wednesday when Republican lawmakers challenged a medical witness on basic biological realities. The exchange prompted strong reactions from Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and Sen. Ashley Moody (R-Fla.) as they pressed a board-certified OB-GYN on whether men can get pregnant.
The hearing focused on the safety and regulation of chemical abortion drugs. During testimony, Dr. Nisha Verma, an OB-GYN representing Physicians for Reproductive Health, declined to give a simple “yes or no” answer when first asked by Sen. Moody whether men can get pregnant and then again by Sen. Hawley. Verma explained she treats patients with “different identities,” suggesting the question oversimplified the topic.
Hawley pressed that the question was rooted in biological fact and central to the hearing’s subject — the impact of abortion drugs on women, the only sex capable of pregnancy. He said the refusal to answer raised concerns about credibility when discussing medical issues tied to reproductive health. “It is not polarizing to say that women are a biological reality and should be treated and protected as such,” Hawley stated during the exchange.
Afterward, Hawley took to social platforms to emphasize his point. He posted that “SPOILER ALERT: Men cannot get pregnant,” reinforcing the biological distinction and arguing that answers should reflect scientific reality. In a follow-up post, he added: “Can men get pregnant? Not a difficult question.”
Republican critics of the hearing contend that demanding precision on biological sex is key to sound policy on abortion and women’s health. They argue that avoiding straightforward answers on such foundational issues undermines scientific clarity and public trust in medical testimony.
