NEW YORK CITY: A grand jury in Louisiana charged a New York doctor for prescribing abortion pills to a teenager in that state.

Dr. Margaret Carpenter and her medical practice, Nightingale Medical, were accused of illegally providing abortion pills, which is a serious crime in Louisiana. The teenager's mother was also charged.

This case is the first time a state has charged a doctor from another state for prescribing abortion pills across state lines. It could set an important legal precedent on whether states that ban abortion can take action against doctors in states where abortion is legal. Carpenter is also facing a separate lawsuit from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill said it is illegal to send abortion pills into the state and vowed to enforce the law.

However, New York officials strongly opposed Louisiana's actions. Governor Kathy Hochul said New York would not allow Carpenter to be sent to Louisiana. New York Attorney General Letitia James called the charges unfair and politically motivated.

More than half of U.S. abortions are done with medication, and the use of abortion pills has been under greater scrutiny since the Supreme Court allowed states to ban abortion in 2022. Louisiana has classified mifepristone, one of the two drugs used for medication abortion, as a controlled substance. The FDA allows its use for abortions up to 10 weeks.

Carpenter, based in New York, co-founded the Abortion Coalition for Telemedicine, which supports abortion access through online consultations. The group said the charges against her threaten reproductive healthcare across the country.

New York is one of eight Democratic-led states with "shield laws" that protect doctors from legal action for prescribing abortion pills to patients in states where abortion is banned. These laws say New York will not help other states prosecute or punish its doctors for providing abortion care.

Legal experts say cases like this will likely test the limits of shield laws. The U.S. Constitution generally requires states to respect each other's court decisions, but there are exceptions. This case could eventually reach the U.S. Supreme Court.

Meanwhile, doctors like Carpenter could face risks if they travel to states without shield laws.

Anti-abortion groups supported the charges, saying Louisiana has the right to protect its residents from what they call dangerous abortion drugs.

Abortion rights groups argue that the case is meant to scare doctors away from helping women in states where abortion is banned.