Christians have opposed bringing RU-486 to the United States since the 1980s, when the drug first became available in France. This opposition has tended to focus on medical issues rather than on ethical ones. These practical considerations have undoubtedly had some influence in delaying the introduction of RU-486 to America. However, the pharmaceutical industry has been effective at minimizing the drug's side effects, and the FDA now has no reservation about making it available to the general public. This shows the inherent limitations of defending a moral position with pragmatic arguments.
Pragmatic arguments have their place in the abortion debate.
On occasion they may even persuade some women not to have an abortion. However, Christians will not win the fight for life without persuading the conscience of the nation, and the conscience can only be moved by fundamental considerations of right and wrong. Abortion has always been a spiritual issue. Since it is a spiritual issue, the question to ask about RU-486, or about any other method of abortion, is whether it is part of God's best plan for the people that he has made in his image. The moral argument against abortion begins with the recognition that life begins at conception.