Supreme Court rejects ban on Mifepristone | summary

BREAKING: SUPREME COURT BLOCKS ATTEMPT TO BAN MIFEPRISTONE

The Supreme Court has ruled against the Texas judge who called into question the FDA's approval of the drug mifepristone, which often is administered during a medical abortion. The drug will remain available to those in states who have not banned it. 

Oregon governor works to obtain three years supple of Mifepristone

Yesterday, Oregon Governor Tina Kotek announced that she would be working to ensure the state has a three year supply of Mifepristone, citing her alarm at the decision of a lower court to ban the drug nationwide. The vast majority of abortions are medical and use this drug and banning it would degrade reproductive healthcare rights even further. 

"The Governor is also directing the state’s licensing boards to issue guidance to Oregon providers clarifying that Oregon supports providers in continuing to provide reproductive health care, consistent with the established standards of care, including prescribing, dispensing and using mifepristone regardless of the upcoming Supreme Court decision in the Texas lawsuit," reads the press release put out by the governor's office. Gov. Kotek is one of the first governors to make clear her intention to continue allowing residents access to the drug, which would mean ignoring the authority of the highest court. 

Representative Alexandria Ocasio Cortez says the Biden administration may need ignore the court

Taking with CNN's Anderson Cooper, Representative Oscasio Cortez said that if the Supreme Court moves to make mifepristone illegally by undermining the FDA, then the Biden administration should ignore the ruling. 

AOC argued that the court relies on the law being upheld by public officials and agencies and that if the decision is seen as illegitimate, it may be time to stand up to the justices. Cooper asked if the public wants to live in a world where the judiciary is challenged or ignored. The congresswoman responded by pointing out that access to these medications is popular, and it is not the rule of the Supreme Court to legislate which medications the people have access to. Watch the full exchange below. 

The ruling is expected at any moment today. 

Which states have banned the mailing of mifepristone?

After the Supreme Court overturned Roe vs. Wade, many people seeking abortions who were early enough in their pregnancy could access the medications necessary through the mail. 

Arizona is the only state that has banned the mailing of mifepristone. In Montana, a law with a similar effect has been passed, but its implementation has been stalled by legal proceedings about the constitutionality of the bans. 

When will the Supreme Court's ruling on mifepristone come out?

Earlier this week, the Supreme Court extended the temporary block on mifepristone on Wednesday, stating that the justices needed more time. The two-day extension expires today, and while no time has been set for the release, either another extension or a decision must be made public. 

Follow us here for the latest. 

Vice President Kamala Harris attacks those undermining the FDA

So mifepristone is the drug that we are talking about — a medication that we also refer to as the abortion pill. 
 
Okay, so what’s the issue here?  The issue is, if — I might be oversimplifying it but it really does, I think, hit the mark.  The FDA — a federal agency charged with doing the scientific work, the peer-based review, the medical work of analyzing medications to determine if they are safe and effective for the use as prescribed by a doctor — that is the entity that is charged with doing that work, and has been doing that work for 85 years, of analyzing and doing the research, because when they see — when they say “FDA approved,” we know and can have confidence this is safe and effective. 
 
And, by the way, it’s also prescribed by a doctor, who, by the way, is a medical professional — (laughs) — unlike the politicians who have put forward lawyers to go to a court of law — not a doctor’s office, not a medical school — to challenge the efficacy of this medication motivated by a political agenda.

What is Mifepristone?

Medical abortion, sometimes called a chemical abortion, does not require surgical intervention. Rather patients are prescribed a drug called Mifepristone, that induces cramping and uterine shedding. The name-brand drugs, Mifeprex and Misoprostol, were granted FDA approval twenty-two years ago, and today, generic versions of the medication are available across the country.

However, after a judge in Texas questioned the FDA's approval of the drug that has been legal for over two decades, it is not up to the Supreme Court to determine whether or not the public will have access. 

The ACLU comes out strong against a ban on mifepristone

One of the US' most recognizeable civil rights organizations has said that the attempt to ban mifepristone "ignores decades of scienfici research and evidence." 

Further, the ACLU and many other medical organizations worry that if upheld the judiciary could begin to ban other drugs that become politicized. One that comes to mind given the slew of anti-trans legislation are hormones or puberty blockers.

The United States supreme court is expected to rule on whether or not the FDA-approved drug Mifepristone, used in medical abortions, should continue to be legal in all fifty states. 

The case was sent to the Supreme Court after a judge in Texas ruled that the FDA had done their due diligence when the agency legalized the drug in 2000. 

Mifepristone is the most common drug used for this procedure, and its ban could threaten access to healthcare for tens of millions if imposed. 

After the decision to overturn Roe vs. Wade, many on the pro-choice side of the argument worry that the country's highest court could continue to degrade the right to reproductive healthcare even further.