A unanimous Supreme Court ruling means the abortion pill mifepristone remains available, including via mail delivery.
FILE - A patient prepares to take the first of two combination pills, mifepristone, for a medication abortion during a visit to a clinic in Kansas City, Kan., on, Oct. 12, 2022. The Supreme Court on Thursday, June 13, 2024, unanimously preserved access to the medication that was used in nearly two-thirds of all abortions in the U.S. last year, in the courts first abortion decision since conservative justices overturned Roe v. Wade two years ago.
While the decision keeps mifepristone available, legal experts say that other groups or individuals who believe they can show a stronger legal connection to the drug might try to sue along similar lines. About half of U.S. states allows online prescribing and mail delivery of mifepristone, conforming to the FDA-approved labeling for the drug.at all stages of pregnancy. Another dozen or so states have laws specifically limiting how mifepristone can be prescribed and distributed, such as requiring an in-person visit with a physician or separate counseling about the potential risks and downsides of the drug.
U.S. studies found that mifepristone resulted in a completed abortion 97.4% of the time, according to the FDA label. Like all drugs, the abortion pill is not 100% effective and in 2.6% of cases, a surgical intervention was needed to complete the abortion. Less than 1% of the time, the pregnancy continued.
Additionally, some patients order the drug through international pharmacies, which are outside the jurisdiction of U.S. authorities.Drugmakers and patient groups had warned that a ruling against mifepristone could undermine the FDA’s century-plus-long regulatory authority by inviting more challenges to medicines the agency has deemed safe and effective.
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