Washington, DC – The US Supreme Court is set to hear oral arguments regarding potential restrictions on access to mifepristone, a widely used abortion pill. This case is being hailed as the most significant reproductive rights case since the nationwide right to abortion was terminated in June 2022. The Biden administration is pushing for the court to overturn restrictions imposed on the drug due to safety concerns raised by anti-abortion groups.
Legal battles surrounding mifepristone began in November 2022 when the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, a group of anti-abortion doctors and activists, filed a lawsuit against the FDA for approving the drug in 2000. The group claims the drug is unsafe and accuses the FDA of unlawfully approving it for use in terminating pregnancies up to seven weeks gestation.
Mifepristone, when used with misoprostol, is the most common method for medical abortions in the US. Statistics from the Guttmacher Institute show that medical abortions accounted for 63% of all abortions in 2023, a significant increase from 53% in 2020. Over five million women in the US have used mifepristone to terminate pregnancies so far.
The case before the Supreme Court focuses on the FDA’s decision to expand access to mifepristone since 2016, allowing its use up to the 10-week mark and lifting in-person dispensing requirements in 2021. The FDA also permitted retail pharmacies to dispense the drug in 2022, expanding the pool of authorized prescribers to include medical professionals beyond just doctors.
The conservative-leaning Supreme Court must determine the legality of the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine’s challenge against the FDA before ruling on the lawfulness of the FDA’s changes to access. The outcome could result in tighter restrictions on mifepristone, potentially limiting access to the pill for Americans. Former FDA associate commissioner for women’s health, Marsha Henderson, warns that reversing the 2016 and 2021 changes could make reproductive care more resource-intensive and less safe, undermining the FDA’s authority and causing confusion among patients.
The upcoming decision by the Supreme Court carries significant implications for reproductive rights and access to abortion in the US. Advocates on both sides of the debate are closely watching the proceedings and awaiting the court’s ruling on this pivotal case.