Today the U.S. Supreme Court rejected a lawsuit that would have made mifepristone, a widely used abortion medication, less accessible.
Mifepristone remains available for abortion care in the U.S. under current FDA rules in states that permit abortion.
The case in question, Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine v. FDA, challenged the FDA’s approval of mifepristone more than 20 years ago. If the Supreme Court had ruled in favor of the lower court decision, it would have brought big changes to abortion care nationwide and significantly reduced access to medication abortion.
Here in Wisconsin, mifepristone is available for abortion care but with major, multiple, non-evidence-based restrictions. Wisconsin state law prohibits telehealth for medication abortion and requires multiple in-person visits with the same physician.
In states where abortion is prohibited, the Supreme Court decision will preserve as is mifepristone’s use in miscarriage management.
Medication abortion, often called the abortion pill, is a safe and effective way to end a pregnancy. Current FDA rules approve the use of mifepristone through 10 weeks of pregnancy for abortion and miscarriage management.
Related CORE resources:
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- Wisconsin state laws impacting abortion access, revised January 2024
- Medication abortion access update, February 2023