The Supreme Court has temporarily extended nationwide access to the abortion pill mifepristone by mail and telehealth, giving the justices more time to consider an emergency application. Justice Samuel Alito issued the order on Monday, keeping the administrative stay in place until Thursday at 5 p.m. ET. The decision follows a lower court ruling that had paused the FDA's 2023 policy allowing mifepristone to be prescribed remotely and sent through the mail.
The case stems from a lawsuit filed by Louisiana, which argues that the FDA's policy undermines its near-total ban on abortion. The state claims that the policy allows providers to circumvent its restrictions, leading to thousands of unlawful abortions annually. Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill contends that the FDA's removal of in-person requirements harms the state and others with similar bans.
Pharmaceutical companies Danco Laboratories and GenBioPro, which manufacture mifepristone, have asked the Supreme Court to lift the lower court's ruling. They argue that the FDA conducted legally mandated reviews and that the drug has a lower adverse effects rate than common medications like penicillin and Viagra. Public health organizations and abortion rights advocates support their position.
Mifepristone is used in roughly two-thirds of all abortions in the U.S., often in combination with misoprostol. A report from the Ethics and Public Policy Center found that nearly 11% of women who undergo mifepristone abortions require medical care for complications. However, the Guttmacher Institute reports that medication abortion accounted for 65% of all clinician-provided abortions in 2023.
The Supreme Court previously rejected a similar legal challenge to mifepristone in 2024, concluding that the plaintiffs lacked standing. The current case is part of ongoing legal battles over abortion access since the overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022.