Update: The Supreme Court has temporarily blocked for one week the Fifth Circuit’s ruling that halted mail-order abortion drugs, pending a drug manufacturer’s appeal.
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One state and one woman just brought down the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) mail-order abortion drug policy — at least temporarily.
The Biden administration created a policy that allows providers to prescribe mifepristone by telemedicine and send through the mail, even though the drug’s safety hasn’t been evaluated since initial approval in 2000.
Then the FDA made a generic version available to expand access.
A few states filed lawsuits against the FDA to restrict access to the drugs. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has been trying to stop these lawsuits.
In April, a federal court ruled in a lawsuit brought by the state of Louisiana and Rosalie Markezich — whose boyfriend used her personal information to obtain mifepristone through the mail and coerced her into taking it — that the plaintiffs have standing to sue.
Susan B. Anthony (SBA) Pro-Life America announced that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has granted Louisiana’s and Markezich’s request to halt the abortion drug mail-order policy. From SBA (emphasis added):
The 5th Circuit agreed that the plaintiffs are likely to succeed, but also found that the lower court erred in denying immediate relief and that the FDA can still complete a safety review of mifepristone, saying: “The public interest is not served by perpetuating a medical practice whose safety the agency admits was inadequately studied. Indeed, the public interest demands the opposite.”
The Center for Urban Renewal and Education, along with other pro-life organizations, sent a letter (PDF) to Todd Blanche, U.S. acting attorney general, urging him to stop DOJ from blocking states’ lawsuits against the FDA.
“Mail-order abortion drugs are the biggest factor in rising abortion rates after Dobbs and a new wave of violence toward pregnant women, fueled by easy online access to deadly drugs,” said Marjorie Dannenfelser, SBA president. “More and more women like Rosalie are coming forward, fighting for justice. It’s shameful that the Trump administration’s inaction has forced pro-life states to take their battle to the federal courts. The FDA does not need a year or more to complete a comprehensive study before it can take dangerous abortion drugs out of the mail – that’s just common sense.”
Photo credit: Robin Marty (Creative Commons) – Some rights reserved
