The U.S. Supreme Court issued a ruling Thursday that preserved access to the abortion pill mifepristone, which is the most common way to end a pregnancy, reports the Associated Press. When the justices heard oral arguments in March, the safety of mifepristone was at the heart of the debate. There are rare occasions when mifepristone can cause dangerous, excessive bleeding that requires emergency care. Because of that, the Food and Drug Administration imposed strict safety limits on who could prescribe and distribute it. Doctors also had to be capable of performing emergency surgery to stop excess bleeding and an abortion procedure if the drug didn’t end the pregnancy. Over the years, the FDA reaffirmed mifepristone’s safety and eased restrictions, culminating in a 2021 decision doing away with any in-person requirements and allowing the pill to be sent through the mail. Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote for the court that “federal courts are the wrong forum for addressing the plaintiffs’ concerns about FDA’s actions.”
Dr. Jamila Perritt of Physicians for Reproductive Health, said the Thursday court ruling “demonstrates a valuing of science, medical expertise, and centering the needs of our communities.” The outcome "allows us to center the medical recognition of the facts is a powerful affirmation of what we have always known: mifepristone is a safe and essential medication, and there is no legitimate medical or scientific reason why access to mifepristone should be limited.” Nancy Northup of the Center for Reproductive Rights expressed frustration that the case, which she called “meritless,” made it up to the Supreme Court at all. “Unfortunately, the attacks on abortion pills will not stop here — the anti-abortion movement sees how critical abortion pills are in this post-Roe world, and they are hell bent on cutting off access,” she added.