DELMARVA - The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday temporarily restored nationwide access to the abortion pill mifepristone, blocking a federal appeals court ruling that would have imposed new restrictions on how the medication is distributed.
According to the Associated Press, the Supreme Court’s order pauses a decision issued Friday by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans. The appeals court ruling would have required mifepristone to be distributed only in person at clinics, overturning federal Food and Drug Administration regulations that allow access through pharmacies and mail delivery.
The temporary order means patients can continue obtaining the medication through pharmacies or by mail without an in-person doctor visit while the legal battle continues.
The case began when Louisiana sued to restrict access to the pill, saying that being able to obtain the pill virtually undermined the ban of it in the state. Meanwhile, some states have laws that are providing protection to the broader access.
Delaware and Maryland have joined the conversation to protect the pill's accessibility, along with 20 other states and D.C. Attorney General Anthony G. Brown said the Fifth Circuit ruling would reinstate a medically unnecessary in-person dispensing requirement for mifepristone.
“We oppose this harmful ruling that is based on neither science nor the law and that stands between our residents and their reproductive freedom," said Brown.
Similarly, Attorney General Kathy Jennings said further limitations would interfere with states’ ability to protect access to reproductive health care within their borders, particularly in rural and medically-underserved areas.
“There is no reason whatsoever to restrict access to a medicine that is demonstrably safe, effective, and necessary for reproductive healthcare,” said Attorney General Kathy Jennings. “The Fifth Circuit’s ruling is a fig leaf for an extreme ideological crusade against the right to choose. This is a dangerous ruling that the Supreme Court must not allow to stand.”
After Friday's ruling from the appeals court, some groups that prescribe abortion pills by telehealth had planned to switch to misoprostol-only regimens.
