Abortion pill access preserved by US appeals court, with limits
A U.S. appeals court on Wednesday ruled that access to the abortion pill should be preserved with some limits, rejecting part of an order from a judge in Texas that would have effectively banned the sale of the drug across the country.
The 2-1 decision is the latest in a complicated legal saga over mifepristone, which remains available for women seeking to end their pregnancies under an April order from the U.S. Supreme Court. That will stay in effect until the high court rules again on the matter or refuses to hear the case on appeal. While the majority said it was too late to challenge the legality of the initial approval of mifepristone by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2000, it upheld some limits imposed by the Texas judge. The appeals court said FDA decisions after 2016 — allowing the drug to be taken later in pregnancy and mailed directly to patients — were likely unlawful and should be rolled back. “In loosening mifepristone’s safety restrictions, FDA failed to address several important concerns about whether the drug would be safe for the women who use it,” Judge Jennifer Elrod wrote for the majority.
The Justice Department said it disagreed with the ruling and plans to file an appeal with the Supreme Court. Medication abortion has become the most popular method for terminating a pregnancy in the U.S. and has emerged as a key target for anti-abortion advocates in the wake of Roe v. Wade being overturned in June 2022. Mifepristone is used as part of a two-pill regimen to terminate pregnancies and treat miscarriages. It is followed by misoprostol, which can also be used on its own to terminate a pregnancy.
Skeptical Judges
Wednesday’s decision follows a contentious hearing in May when the Republican-appointed judges on the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans appeared skeptical of the government’s assertions that mifepristone is safe.
