“This is good news, but the facts remain: mifepristone access should never have been threatened in the first place,” family planning organization Planned Parenthood tweeted. More than five million American women have taken mifepristone since it was approved by the FDA 20 years ago.
Court against Court
The legal conundrum began when a federal judge in Texas, because of his Christian faith, his ultra-conservative positions and an appointment by Donald Trump, revoked marketing authorization for mifepristone on April 7 after it was seized by anti-abortion activists. Despite the scientific consensus, she felt it could endanger women’s health.
An appeals court in New Orleans, seized by the federal government, later allowed the abortion pill to be approved, but for years restricted access to the FDA. His ruling banned mail-order mifepristone and returned it to limited use to seven weeks of pregnancy instead of ten weeks.
The central government then approached the Supreme Court. The latter temporarily maintained access to the abortion pill a week ago, suspending the appeals court’s decision to have more time to examine the file. To further complicate the matter, a federal judge sitting in Washington state, appointed by Barack Obama, ruled that mifepristone was “safe and effective” after his colleague’s decision in Texas, and barred the FDA from withdrawing its approval in 17 States and in the capital.
Canada stands ready to help
The first suspension decided by the Supreme Court will come into force before midnight on Wednesday. But in a possible sign of dissent surrounding the question, Justice Samuel Alito on Wednesday noted a 48-hour extension until “11:59 p.m. on Friday, April 21.” The court, at its discretion, may decide to suspend the decisions of the lower courts, uphold them, take the case or, conversely, refuse to engage. An anti-abortion doctors’ association urged the high court on Tuesday to leave the appeals court ruling intact, saying mifepristone was dangerous to women’s health.
The abortion pill is already officially unavailable in some of the fifteen US states that have recently banned abortion, even though workarounds have been created. The impact of restrictions or bans on the pill will be of major concern to states where abortion is legal — to many Democrats.
Even in neighboring Canada, the case has raised concerns. Canadian Families Minister Karina Gould reiterated her country’s intention to help American women if needed. “We’re very committed to making sure that we can support American women if they need that access here,” she told CTV Thursday.
AFP
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