Washington DC, United States.- The Justice Department said Thursday that it will challenge in the Supreme Court the restrictions imposed by a federal appeals court on the abortion pill mifepristone, access to which is threatened by a court battle.
The Joe Biden Administration will go to Court “to uphold the scientific judgment” of the United States Drug Administration (FDA) “and protect Americans’ access to safe and effective reproductive care,” said US Attorney General Merrick Garland.
The panel partially vacated the ruling by Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk of the Northern District of Texas, who last week ruled that the FDA’s 2000 approval of mifepristone was invalid, essentially saying the drug should be withdrawn from the market.
However, the appeals panel said it was striking down a number of steps the FDA took in recent years to make the drug easier to access, including allowing it to be mailed and prescribed by non-physician health care providers.
The three-judge panel for the Fifth Circuit is made up of two judges appointed by former President Donald Trump and one by former President George W. Bush, both Republicans.
Judge Catharina Haynes, a Bush appointee, dissented in part, saying she would have temporarily blocked Kacsmaryk’s order altogether.
The emergency stay is meant to remain in effect until the Fifth Circuit can hear the Biden Administration’s appeal of the Kacsmaryk order more fully. That appeal can be heard by a different panel.
