The Justice Department “will not cease” its defense of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) amid legal wrangling over the accessibility of mifepristone, which is a prescription medication used in abortions conducted through medication, an official at the department said.
Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta released the prepared remarks asserting the department’s commitment to the cause after the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear arguments related to recent years’ decisions from that federal health agency related to the drug’s availability. Challengers have put under contention both initial approvals for the drug’s use and subsequent expansions, like an additional, weeks-long period of early pregnancy when the prescribed substance can be utilized.
“We are glad that the Supreme Court has agreed to hear this important case,” Gupta said. “While the litigation continues, the stay the Court entered earlier this year means that mifepristone will remain available under the conditions approved by the FDA based on its expert scientific judgment. The Justice Department will not cease its efforts to defend the FDA’s authorities and expertise in this area.”
Polling has consistently shown extensive support among Americans for access to abortion that’s broader than the obvious ambitions of leading Republicans in legislative roles.
Following the Supreme Court’s most recent decisions on abortion, which undid the nationally established legal allowance for the procedure originating in Roe v. Wade, a slew of Republican-led states have pursued newly enabled restrictions often closing in on the very earliest parts of pregnancy, meaning abortion has been nearly completely banned save for rare exceptions within their jurisdictions. One of the legislative and general policymaking responses has been the push by states with leadership on the other side to establish they’ll not be cooperating with any out-of-state cases from jurisdictions where abortion is restricted into individuals who make a trek to access the procedure and related forms of reproductive health care.
