The Supreme Court considered a challenge to the FDA’s relaxed requirements for dispensing an abortion drug, mifepristone, which is used in nearly two-thirds of abortions in the country. The Biden administration and abortion rights supporters support keeping the current rules in place, allowing access to the medication in most of the country. The decision may hinge on whether the suing doctors and advocacy groups have standing to block nationwide access to the medication. The court’s ruling on this legal threshold could mean that it does not address the broader legal arguments regarding FDA authority to regulate the safety of medicines. Justice Neil Gorsuch expressed concerns about nationwide injunctions and their impact on court decisions.
The issue of mifepristone access has become a contentious political, social, cultural, and health-related debate as the Supreme Court considers whether the FDA should have the discretion to regulate the drug. The court’s decision could have a significant impact on abortion rights, with new data showing that nearly two-thirds of abortions in the U.S. in 2023 relied on mifepristone. Abortion rights groups argue that the drug is safe and essential to women’s health, while anti-abortion organizations claim that the FDA has unlawfully promoted on-demand abortion nationally. The drug is taken in combination with misoprostol, and recent regulations have made access to it easier, including allowing it to be mailed.
The Supreme Court spent limited time discussing the merits of the case, focusing instead on the issue of whether the FDA overstepped its authority by loosening restrictions on mifepristone access. Some justices appeared supportive of the government’s position that the FDA’s judgment should not be second-guessed in matters of drug safety. The court also touched on upcoming abortion-related cases, including a challenge to Idaho’s restrictions and a challenge to federal laws requiring hospitals to provide stabilizing care, including abortions, in life-threatening scenarios. The outcome of these cases could have significant political implications leading up to the November elections.
The consolidated mifepristone cases at the Supreme Court are FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine (23-235) and Danco Laboratories, LLC v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine (23-236). A ruling on these cases is expected by late June, with potential far-reaching implications for abortion rights and access to reproductive healthcare. Ultimately, the Supreme Court’s decision on these cases could shape the future of abortion policy in the United States and have a lasting impact on millions of women across the nation.
