Rep. Todd Akin: Morning-after pills should be banned

Republican Rep. Todd Akin, who is running for Senate in Missouri, on Wednesday said that emergency contraceptive pills should be outlawed.

"As far as I'm concerned, the morning-after pill is a form of abortion," he told KCMO's Greg Knapp, "and I think we shouldn't have abortion in this country."

Akin suggested there should be no exceptions for rape or incest. When it came the mother's health, doctors should try to "optimize life."

"The life of the mother, the situation there is one where I think what you want to do is optimize life," Akin said. "You try to save the mother's life, you try to save the child. There are certain things like, you know, you get a tubal pregnancy where the child has absolutely no chance of surviving, then you do the best you can to save the mother's life."

Emergency contraceptive pills like Plan B and Ella can prevent pregnancy in women after unprotected sex by delaying or preventing ovulation. Anti-abortion advocates have opposed the pills because some research has found it prevents fertilized eggs from implanting on the uterine wall. However, that research is highly disputed.

Listen to audio, clipped by Progress Missouri, below: