Topline
The Food and Drug Administration under President Donald Trump asked a district court in Texas to dismiss a lawsuit from three conservative state attorneys general seeking to limit access to mifepristone, a drug used for abortions—a decision that continues former President Joe Biden’s administration’s stance on the case.
Mifepristone tablets are seen in a Planned Parenthood clinic Thursday, July 18, 2024, in Ames, Iowa. … More
Key Facts
In a Monday filing, lawyers for the Trump administration argued the case should be dismissed not because of its merits, but because the court in Texas does not have jurisdiction.
The lawsuit seeking to strengthen restrictions on mifepristone was revived by attorneys general in three states—Idaho, Kansas and Missouri—after it was initially filed by anti-abortion groups and rejected by the Supreme Court last year.
The Supreme Court rejected the argument and protected access to mifepristone last year because it said the doctors who led the suit didn’t have legal standing to challenge the FDA’s regulations.
Because the Supreme Court didn’t address the merits of whether the drug should be restricted, the case was sent back to lower courts rather than dismissed, which allowed the states to revive the case.
This story is developing and will be updated.
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What Has Donald Trump Said About Mifepristone?
In a December interview with Time Magazine after he was named Person of the Year, Trump committed to “making sure that the FDA does not strip (women’s) ability to access abortion pills.” While campaigning last year, Trump said he believed abortion should be an issue left to states rather than one with federal guidance, and he said in October he “would not support a federal abortion ban, under any circumstances, and would, in fact, veto it.”
What Has Trump’s Fda Commissioner Said About Mifepristone?
Prior to being confirmed, Trump’s FDA commissioner, Dr. Marty Makary, said he intended to review the Biden-era rule that made mifepristone more widely available, saying at a Senate hearing, “I do think it makes sense to review the totality of data and ongoing data.”. In late April, though, Makary said that if data being collected “suggests something or tells us that there’s a real signal,” the FDA could act on it, but he has “no plans to take action” against mifepristone access.
Chief Critic
In a statement shared with Forbes, Julia Kaye, an American Civil Liberties Union attorney and legal expert, said, “The Trump Administration should not get a gold star for continuing to highlight the glaring legal flaws in Missouri’s case – they could not do otherwise with a straight face.” Kaye added: “Decades of scientific evidence and the nation’s leading medical authorities agree that mifepristone is safe, effective, and essential to reproductive health care.”
Key Background
Mifepristone is one of two drugs typically taken during a medical abortion, and some medical professionals have said it’s “among the safest medications” the FDA has ever approved. After the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, though, abortion pills came under fire because they allowed people in states where abortion is banned to access the procedure more easily and covertly. According to a study from the Guttmacher Institute, medication abortions accounted for 63% of abortions in the U.S. in 2023, up from 53% in 2020.
Further Reading
Supreme Court Upholds Abortion Drug Mifepristone (Forbes)
Supreme Court Keeps Abortion Pill Mifepristone Legal—But GOP States Could Still Sue. Here’s What Happens Next. (Forbes)
Trump Administration Asks Court to Dismiss Abortion Pill Case (New York Times)
