Access to Abortion Pill Mifepristone Uncertain in US After Texas Ruling. Five Takeaways

The Justice Department of the US citing a statement from US attorney general Merrick Garland said the Biden administration will appeal the Texas court’s decision of blocking access to the abortion pill mifepristone.

“The Justice Department strongly disagrees with the decision of the District Court for the Northern District of Texas in Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine v. FDA and will be appealing the court’s decision and seeking a stay pending appeal,” the statement, accessed by news agency BBC reads.

The Justice Department noted that it stands by the two decade-old judgement by US Food and Drug Administration which said “mifepristone is safe and effective” and will continue to defend it. “(The Justice) department is committed to protecting Americans’ access to legal reproductive care,” it further added.

What Happened?

Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, a federal judge in Texas, suspended the FDA’s approval of mifepristone. Mifepristone, combined with misoprostol, is one of two drugs used for medication abortion in the United States.

The judge gave the FDA a week to appeal the suspension and stayed his order via a preliminary injunction.

However, another federal judge in Washington, in a separate case, directly contradicted Kacsmaryk’s ruling, ordering the FDA to refrain from making any changes to the availability of mifepristone.

Kacsmaryk, in his ruling, pointed out that the FDA failed to consider the “psychological effects” of mifepristone, the BBC said.

The approval, when granted in 2000, said it did not take into account that women who take the pill to undergo chemical abortion experience “intense psychological trauma and post-traumatic stress” and added that the FDA failing to take this aspect into account should not be “overlooked or understated”.

Who Filed the Case?

The Alliance Defending Freedom filed the lawsuit against the FDA’s initial approval, saying that the regulatory body did not “adequately review” safety risks associated with the drug.

They were also involved in the Mississippi case that led to the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

What Happens Next?

The conflicting verdicts from Texas and Washington mean that the fate of mifepristone could be resolved by the Supreme Court.

If Judge Kacsmaryk’s decision is enforced it will have significant repercussions for miscarriage and abortion across the US.

A report by the Guardian pointed out that over half of all abortions in the country are carried out using pills and such a ruling would be a major blow to reproductive rights since the Roe v Wade ruling.

The FDA, as pointed out by the Guardian and the BBC, is not obliged to uphold the judge’s ruling and backed with the ruling from Washington, the regulatory body will most likely challenge Kacsmaryk’s ruling swiftly.

Is Mifepristone Banned in the US

For seven days, nothing will change, as the FDA readies an appeal. How far will it affect availability is also a subject of speculation. In states where abortion is already banned as neither misoprostol or mifepristone is not available for abortions in these states.

States that give the freedom to choose may move to clarify that misoprostol, the second drug in the protocol, can be legally or safely obtained, the Guardian said.

Reactions

The Democrats harshly criticized the ruling along with organizations such as Planned Parenthood. US Vice President Kamala Harris said: “It is contrary to what makes for good public health policy to allow courts and politicians to tell the FDA what it should do.”

“There is no question that the president and I are going to stand with the women of America and do everything we can to ensure that women have the ability to make decisions about their health care, their reproductive health care,” the Vice President of the United States was quoted as saying by the BBC.

Anti-abortion groups welcomed the ruling with the group March for Life saying the ruling stops pro-abortion political agenda. “This action by the court will save lives and ensure that the health and safety of women and girls is not compromised for the sake of advancing a pro-abortion political agenda,” March For Life said.

Democrat governor of the US state of Illinois JB Pritzker said “abortion medication remains safe and legal in Illinois”. “One right-wing anti-choice Texas judge will not stand in the way of access to mifepristone in Illinois,” he further added. Democrat Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Michigan governor Whitmer and Washington governor Inslee also slammed the decision

Planned Parenthood termed the decision “unprecedented and harmful”.

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