The abortion medicine mifepristone’s approval in the United States has been revoked, potentially disrupting reproductive healthcare for millions of individuals.
In Amarillo, Texas, District Judge Matthew J Kacsmaryk, a Trump administration appointee, signed an injunction instructing the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to freeze its clearance while a case contesting its safety is pending.
He sided with a conservative Christian group, Alliance Defending Freedom, which filed a lawsuit saying that the medicine was not properly regulated.
He did not go as far as the complainants desired, but he did place a “stay” or hold on the drug’s approval.
The judge’s decision is not effective for seven days. Meanwhile, the Department of Justice has stated that it will appeal the decision.
President Joe Biden issued a statement saying, “My administration will challenge this verdict…
“Let’s be clear: the only way to stop those who are determined to take away women’s rights and liberties in every state is to elect a Congress that will adopt legislation reinstating Roe v. Wade.”
“Vice President [Kamala] Harris and I will continue to lead the fight to safeguard a woman’s right to an abortion and the right to make her own health decisions.”
Mifepristone, which suppresses the hormone required to continue a pregnancy, has been allowed for medical abortion and miscarriage care in the United States since 2000.
It is used safely in over 60 nations throughout the world, and when combined with the medicine misoprostol, it accounts for more than half of all abortions in the United States.
Some abortion providers have stated that they will wait for FDA instructions before implementing the mifepristone restriction.
Also, on Friday night in Washington state, a court ruled that the FDA must keep pharmaceutical abortion pills available in at least 12 liberal states, resulting in a legal standoff over the drug that is likely to escalate to the Supreme Court.
According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the Texas lawsuit ignores “decades of data” supporting the efficacy of mifepristone and is “exacerbating the current abortion care crisis in the United States.”
“Mifepristone is actually one of the safest drugs on the market – safer than ibuprofen, safer than Tylenol,” Dr Razel Remen, an abortion practitioner in Michigan, told AWN News.
“People are more likely to have an undesirable event happen to them while driving or giving birth… It’s totally ridiculous that it’s even being questioned.”
Angel, 24, from Texas, had an abortion with the medication in February.
She already had three children and decided to terminate her most recent pregnancy since she did not want any more.
Angel calls the proposed mifepristone ban “another infringement on a woman’s right to choose.”
“You can do it at home… it’s convenient, simple, and secure… I just don’t see how anything could have been correct for so long. And then, all of a sudden, be incorrect.”
After the Supreme Court abolished Roe v Wade – the constitutional right to abortion – in June 2022, pills have become the new front line in the battle for abortion access.
Many persons attempting to obtain abortion in severely limited states order pills through the mail or go across state borders to pick them up.
Because abortion clinics in Texas had already been closed, Angel had to obtain the drugs through illegal means.
“Getting an abortion here is practically impossible,” she explained. “You are unable to go to the drugstore. You are unable to visit a Planned Parenthood facility. There are no clinics… nothing… It’s like a blessing if you find it.”
With mifepristone availability under threat, pro-choice activists fear that procuring an abortion in America would become even more difficult.
“What is apparent is that we need all forms of abortion in this nation, and we need them all to be legal,” says Elisa Wells, co-founder of Plan C.
Her organisation provides information and assistance to women seeking abortion access in all 50 states.
“This injustice is being committed by attempting to outlaw this drug through the court system… “It’s absolutely awful,” Ms Wells stated.
“We are a contemporary democracy, and we require legal and unrestricted access to fundamental medical care in every corner of our country, including abortion.”
For people who are still seeking a medical abortion, there are alternatives to mifepristone.
Several clinicians have been anticipating the decision and want to switch to a misoprostol-only regimen. They claim the approach is still safe, but it may cause greater side effects and discomfort.
This judgement ushers in yet another contentious legal struggle over abortion access in America, which could end up back in the Supreme Court.