Abortion pill: The Supreme Court on Friday rejected lower-court restrictions on the abortion pill. The step allows women access to a drug used in the most common method of abortion.
The justices granted emergency requests from the Biden administration and New York-based Danco Laboratories, maker of the drug mifepristone. They are appealing a lower court ruling that would roll back Food and Drug Administration approval of mifepristone.
In a brief order, the justices granted emergency requests by the Justice Department and the manufacturer of the pill Danco Laboratories to put on hold an April 7 preliminary injunction issued by U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk in Texas, as reported by the news agency Reuters.
Biden hails decision
President Joe Biden praised the high court for keeping mifepristone available even as the lawsuit continues.
“The stakes could not be higher for women across America. I will continue to fight politically-driven attacks on women’s health. But let’s be clear — the American people must continue to use their vote as their voice, and elect a Congress who will pass a law restoring the protections of Roe v. Wade,” Biden said in a statement.
The drug has been approved for use in the US since 2000 and more than 5 million people have used it. Mifepristone is used in combination with a second drug, misoprostol, in more than half of all abortions in the U.S.
Drug has long safety record
Mifepristone can be used in the United States through the first 10 weeks of pregnancy. It has a long safety record, and the FDA estimates 5.6 million Americans have used it to terminate pregnancies since it was approved.
Although abortion care has been halted in more than a dozen states after the Supreme Court overturned the constitutional right in June 2022, it is still legal in dozens more.
FDA challenged like never before
Earlier this month, approval of mifepristone was halted by a conservative federal judge Matthew Kacsmaryk in the state of Texas. The decision of the judge will not come into effect for a week to give federal authorities time to appeal. The case against the FDA is being seen as a latest step in the campaign to ensure a total ban on abortion after a landmark Supreme Court ruling last year.
FDA has never been challenged like this before on its approval of a drug that has proven safe and effective. The plaintiffs — a coalition of anti-abortion groups — counted on being able to win a national freeze on the distribution of mifepristone.
“This ruling opens a new door to politicizing medicine,” New York Governor Kathy Hochul posted on Twitter. “Extremists will not stop at stripping away abortion rights.” Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren posted that “because of today’s lawless ruling, women could lose access to a safe and legal medication they’ve relied on for decades.”
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