The most common abortion method in the U.S. is at risk of disappearing from the market, at least temporarily, after a Texas judge granted an injunction against the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s decades-old approval for mifepristone, also known as the abortion pill.
The preliminary injunction issued Friday by U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, who was appointed by President Donald Trump, could soon end the sale and distribution of mifepristone — used as part of a two-pill regimen to terminate a pregnancy within the first 10 weeks — while a lawsuit seeking a more permanent ban on the drug proceeds. The Biden administration has seven days to appeal to the 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals.
The FDA gave its approval for mifepristone to terminate early pregnancies more than 20 years ago. The anti-abortion groups suing the agency argue that it fast-tracked the regulatory process and did so without sufficient scientific evidence. Decades of research has shown the pill to be safe and effective.
