Supreme court allows abortion pill mifepristone to continue to be available by mail
The Guardian • • nation
Key Points:
- The US Supreme Court upheld nationwide access to mail-order mifepristone in a 7-2 shadow-docket decision, overturning a Fifth Circuit ruling that had banned the practice following a lawsuit by Louisiana.
- Louisiana argued that the FDA's remote prescribing rules for mifepristone violated the state's abortion ban and the 1873 Comstock Act, but the Supreme Court found Louisiana lacked standing and sent the case back to the Fifth Circuit.
- The decision maintains access to medication abortion, which accounts for about two-thirds of US abortions, with research showing these medications are safe and effective despite ongoing politically motivated legal challenges.
- The FDA is continuing its science-based safety review of mifepristone and plans to provide transparency updates, while abortion providers prepare alternative regimens like misoprostol alone amid potential future legal challenges.
- The entire Senate Democratic caucus reintroduced a resolution affirming mifepristone's safety and effectiveness, emphasizing that related laws and policies should be equitable, transparent, and grounded in peer-reviewed scientific evidence.