Latest Updates: State And Federal Abortion Policies Impacting Reproductive Medicine
As state and federal lawmakers act to reform policies following the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision, related litigation is also ongoing. Get the latest updates here.
February 19, 2024 Updates
Two of the studies cited by Texas Judge in his ruling suspending federal approval of abortion pill mifepristone were retracted on February 5, 2024.
August 17, 2023 Updates
On Wednesday, August 16, a federal appeals court said the FDA overstepped its authority when it made the drug more accessible and ruled to limit access to the abortion pill. The ruling from a three-judge panel of the New Orleans-based 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals is not expected to immediately affect access to mifepristone. For now, an earlier US Supreme Court decision pausing any changes to the status quo stands, with an appeal of the federal court’s ruling to the highest court expected in short order.
May 25, 2023 Updates
On May 17, a three-person panel of judges in the New Orleans-based Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals held oral arguments regarding a Texas judge’s April decision to take mifepristone, a medication used in more than half of U.S. abortions, off the shelves by its longstanding FDA approval. The court entertained arguments from attorneys representing the group that sued to remove mifepristone from market (The Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine) and attorneys for both the Department of Justice and the makers of the drug’s generic version, challenging the decision.
May 2, 2023 Updates
On April 21, The Supreme Court issued a stay (or pause) on a Texas judge’s decision to revoke FDA approval of mifepristone, effectively removing it from the market. Since the passage of the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906, the FDA has made decisions on the safety and efficacy of the product.
