(RepublicanNews.org) – The abortion drug mifepristone has been on a legal roller coaster this spring, and it continues with the Supreme Court delaying action on the question of whether it’s illegal.
The drug was first approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2000. It is taken with another drug. The combined action of these two drugs blocks hormones in the woman’s body that are necessary to keep the fetus alive and cause contractions that expel the dead fetus. 5 million women have used the drug protocol to abort their pregnancies since it was approved.
A series of lower court rulings this spring blocked the FDA’s prior approval that had allowed the drug to be sent by mail. The drug maker, medical professionals, and Democratic interest groups have loudly objected. They say the courts are infringing on the legal responsibilities and authority of the FDA.
Justice Samuel Alito previously put a stop to these lower court rulings and has now ordered that the “pause” on them will continue until Saturday, April 22.
Both the Biden administration and the drug’s manufacturer, Danco Laboratories, asked the Supreme Court to reject the lower courts’ limitations on mifepristone. They claim women who want it and doctors who prescribe it will be in chaos if the limitations take effect.
On the other side of the issue, anti-abortion doctors and medical groups are challenging the drug’s safety. They’re being represented by the legal group Alliance Defending Freedom, a Christian and conservative law firm. The plaintiffs argue that the FCA is choosing “politics over science”.
A wide range of liberal groups and individuals are fighting to keep the drug legal and available. More than 250 Democratic members of Congress, former officials with the FDA, and government officials from Democrat cities and states are all pushing back against the effort to curb the drug’s use.
The abortion battle has heated up since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade in 2022.
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