Doctors issue stark warning as Louisiana reclassifies abortion pills

Officials class mifepristone and misoprostol as controlled substances' - which medics say could imperil women's lives

Two common abortion pills are, as of Tuesday, classified as controlled substances" in Louisiana, due to a first-of-its-kind law that medical professionals warn will endanger the lives of women by restricting medication used to treat postpartum hemorrhage and other conditions.

Louisiana, which already bans abortion, passed a law reclassifying mifepristone and misoprostol as schedule IV drugs - a designation typically reserved for drugs that carry a risk of abuse or dependence. People caught with the drugs without a valid prescription could face up to five years in prison, although pregnant women who procure it for their own use are exempted from punishment under the law.