U.S. Supreme Court preserves access to abortion pill as lawsuit continues
The abortion pill will remain available throughout the United States while a lawsuit over its approval and use works through the appeals process, the U.S. Supreme Court said Friday. The court issued a stay that ensures access to mifepristone nationwide, reversing lower court rulings about when and how the abortion medication should be available in a case filed by anti-abortion organizations.
Overview of Medication Abortion
Mifepristone, which blocks a hormone called progesterone that is needed for a pregnancy to continue, is one of two drugs used in a medication abortion. Medical abortions make up more than half of abortions in the U.S., according to research by the Guttmacher Institute. Friday’s highly anticipated ruling by the high court means the abortion pill will remain on the market for now without the limitations placed on it by a federal appeals court.
Legal Timeline and Context
The case is expected to ultimately be decided by the high court following appeals court deliberations. Friday’s decision stems from a ruling in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, where Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, in early April, essentially overturned the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s approval of mifepristone dating back to 2000. Following this, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans then placed a partial hold on the district court ruling, following a request from the U.S. Department of Justice. The ruling by that three-judge panel would have kept mifepristone on the market, but required use and administration of mifepristone to revert to the FDA’s pre-2016 instructions.
| Court / Entity | Legal Action Taken |
|---|---|
| U.S. Supreme Court | Issued a stay ensuring nationwide access and reversing lower court limitations. |
| U.S. District Court (Texas) | Essentially overturned the FDA’s approval of mifepristone dating back to 2000. |
| 5th Circuit Court of Appeals | Placed a partial hold on the district court ruling, requiring pre-2016 instructions. |
| Washington District Court | Ordered the FDA to preserve the status quo for 17 states and D.C. |
Regarding the specific legal order, the opinion read: “The April 7, 2023, order of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas, case No. 2:22–cv–223, is stayed pending disposition of the appeal in the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.”
Judicial Dissents and Executive Reaction
The only noted dissents were from Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito. Alito wrote that he would not have granted the stay for the lower court decision, arguing that the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals placed the suit on a “fast track.” In his dissent, Alito argued that the Justice Department did not prove “that they are likely to suffer irreparable harm.”
In a statement, President Joe Biden said the stay granted by the Supreme Court prevented a lower court from undermining the “FDA’s medical judgment and put women’s health at risk.” He further noted, “I continue to stand by FDA’s evidence-based approval of mifepristone, and my Administration will continue to defend FDA’s independent, expert authority to review, approve, and regulate a wide range of prescription drugs.”
Competing Rulings in Other States
Regarding a separate, contrary ruling issued by a federal judge in Washington state that preserves full access to the abortion pill in more than a dozen states, Alito said the argument that “chaos” could ensue from the opposite decisions “should not be given any weight.” That separate case pertaining to access to mifepristone that contradicts the Texas decision came from 17 Democratic state attorneys general — and the District of Columbia — who filed a suit, arguing that the FDA wrongly imposed restrictions on mifepristone. Shortly after the Texas judge’s decision, Washington state judge Thomas Rice, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, ordered the FDA to preserve the status quo for mifepristone for those 17 states and the District of Columbia.