The Supreme Court on Monday upheld full access to the abortion pill mifepristone, as it continues to deliberate on how to resolve a case that could limit the drug’s availability.
Through an order issued by Justice Samuel Alito on May 4, the court provisionally suspended a lower court ruling that would have prevented the distribution of the pill by mail.
Alito on Monday extended said suspension until Thursday at 5 p.m., giving the justices another four days to evaluate their next steps.
(Supreme Court pauses appeals court order blocking access to mifepristone by mail)
The nationwide availability of mifepristone was threatened when the New Orleans-based Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals granted a request from Louisiana to overturn former President Joe Biden’s administration rules that allowed the drug to be administered without the need for an in-person consultation, meaning it can theoretically be mailed anywhere in the country, even to states with strict abortion bans.
Anti-abortion groups have been pushing for years to reinstate the in-person dispensing requirement, arguing that taking mifepristone at home can be dangerous, even though studies have shown it to be safe and effective.
Pharmaceutical company Danco makes Mifeprex, the brand-name version of mifepristone, while GenBioPro makes a generic version.
In 2024, the Supreme Court rejected an attempt to overturn Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approvals for mifepristone.
The new case centers on the Biden Administration’s decision to make permanent COVID-19-era rules that made it easier to obtain the drug during the pandemic.
President Donald Trump’s administration has been unusually quiet about the Supreme Court’s decision. He declined to file a motion recommending the justices what to do, even though the case involves federal regulations.
This case places the Trump Administration in a difficult position: the president has had the political support of anti-abortion groups but has also seen how the results of electoral consultations and surveys show that a majority of Americans support the right to abortion.
