PanamaTimes

Sunday, Jul 06, 2025

US Will Take Abortion Pill Case To Supreme Court

US Will Take Abortion Pill Case To Supreme Court

The move by the administration of President Joe Biden came just hours after an appeals court blocked moves to ban mifepristone.
The US Justice Department said Thursday that it will go to the Supreme Court to appeal restrictions imposed on a widely-used abortion pill in the latest round of an intensifying battle over reproductive rights.

The move by the administration of President Joe Biden came just hours after an appeals court blocked moves to ban mifepristone, but limited access to the drug used for more than half of the abortions in the United States.

"We will be seeking emergency relief from the Supreme Court... to protect Americans' access to safe and effective reproductive care," US Attorney General Merrick Garland said.

Speaking to reporters during Joe Biden's visit to Dublin, Ireland, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said "we believe that the law is on our side, and we will prevail."

Late Wednesday, the US Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals said mifepristone should remain available for now, but limited access to the first seven weeks of pregnancy, down from 10.

The appeals court also said in-person visits would be necessary to obtain the pill -- a requirement lifted in recent years -- and blocked the medication from being sent by mail.

The 2-1 ruling by the conservative-majority federal appeals court in New Orleans, Louisiana, came after a US District Court judge in Texas overturned the Food and Drug Administration's two-decades old approval of the drug last Friday.

The appeals court ruling was denounced by Planned Parenthood, the ACLU, the Center for Reproductive Rights and other groups seeking to maintain access to abortion.

"We are furious that yet another court would choose to jeopardize the health and futures of the millions of people who rely on mifepristone for abortion care," said Planned Parenthood president Alexis McGill Johnson.

Jennifer Dalven, director of the ACLU Reproductive Freedom Project, said "unless the Supreme Court steps in, this decision will prevent many people from getting abortion care and force them to remain pregnant against their will."

'Win'

The anti-abortion group Susan B. Anthony described the latest ruling by two judges appointed by former Republican president Donald Trump as a "win."

"The court recognized that the abortion pill is dangerous and rolled back Biden's reckless mail-order abortion scheme," said Susan B. Anthony state policy director Katie Daniel. "We look forward to the Supreme Court hearing this case."

The latest standoff over women's reproductive freedom in America comes almost a year after the conservative-dominated Supreme Court overturned the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling that had enshrined the constitutional right to abortion for half a century.

Mifepristone is one component of a two-drug regimen that can be used in the United States through the first 10 weeks of pregnancy.

It has a long safety record, and the FDA estimates 5.6 million Americans have used it to terminate pregnancies since it was approved.

Last week's ruling by Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, also a Trump appointee, imposing a nationwide ban on mifepristone came in response to a suit by a coalition of anti-abortion groups.

The judge, in his decision, adopted language used by abortion opponents, referring to abortion providers as "abortionists" and saying the drug was used to "kill the unborn human."

Mr Kacsmaryk said the two-drug regimen that includes mifepristone had resulted in "thousands of adverse events suffered by women and girls," including intense bleeding and psychological trauma.

But the FDA, researchers and the drugmaker say decades of experience have proven the medication to be safe and effective when used as indicated.

Shortly after the initial Texas decision, a judge in Washington state ruled in a separate case that access to mifepristone must be preserved.

Polls repeatedly show a clear majority of Americans support continued access to safe abortion, even as conservative groups push to limit access the procedure -- or ban it outright.
Newsletter

Related Articles

PanamaTimes
0:00
0:00
Close
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
OpenAI Secures Multimillion-Dollar AI Contracts with Pentagon, India, and Grab
Brazilian Congress Rejects Lula's Proposed Tax Increase on Financial Transactions
Landslide in Bello, Colombia, Results in Multiple Casualties
Papa Johns pizza surge near the Pentagon tipped off social media before Trump's decisive Iran strike
Juncker Criticizes EU Inaction on Trump Tariffs
Minnesota Lawmaker Melissa Hortman and Husband Killed in Targeted Attack; Senator John Hoffman and Wife Injured
Wreck of $17 Billion San José Galleon Identified Off Colombia After 300 Years
Sole Survivor of Air India Crash Recounts Escape
Coinbase CEO Warns Bitcoin Could Supplant US Dollar Amid Mounting National Debt
UK and EU Reach Agreement on Gibraltar's Schengen Integration
Israeli Finance Minister Imposes Banking Penalties on Palestinians
U.S. Inflation Rises to 2.4% in May Amid Trade Tensions
Trump's Policies Prompt Decline in Chinese Student Enrollment in U.S.
Global Oceans Near Record Temperatures as CO₂ Levels Climb
Trump Announces U.S.-China Trade Deal Covering Rare Earths
Smuggled U.S. Fuel Funds Mexican Cartels Amid Crackdown
Protests Erupt in Los Angeles with Symbolic Flag Burning
Trump Administration Issues New Travel Ban Targeting 12 Countries
Man Group Mandates Full-Time Office Return for Quantitative Analysts
JPMorgan Warns Analysts Against Accepting Future-Dated Job Offers
Builder.ai Faces Legal Scrutiny Amid Financial Misreporting Allegations
Japan Grapples with Rice Shortage Amid Soaring Prices
Goldman Sachs Reduces Risk Exposure Amid Market Volatility
HSBC Chairman Mark Tucker to Return to AIA as Non-Executive Chair
Israel Confirms Arming Gaza Clan to Counter Hamas Influence
Judge Blocks Trump's Ban on International Students at Harvard
Trump Proposes Travel Ban on 'Uncontrolled' Countries
Panama Port Owner Balances US-China Pressures
Trump Administration Accused of Obstructing Deportation Cases
Trump’s China Strategy Remains a Geopolitical Puzzle
Eurozone Inflation Falls Below ECB Target to 1.9%
Call for a New Chapter in Globalisation Emerges
Blackstone and Rivals Diverge on Private Equity Strategy
Mayor’s Security Officer Implicated | Shocking New Details Emerge in NYC Kidnapping Case
Bangkok Ranked World's Top City for Remote Work in 2025
Denmark Increases Retirement Age to 70, Setting a European Precedent
Netanyahu Accuses Western Leaders of 'Emboldening Hamas'
Escalating Trade Tensions and Market Reactions
OnlyFans Reportedly in Talks for $8 Billion Sale
JBS Gains Shareholder Approval for U.S. Stock Listing
Booz Allen Hamilton to Cut 2,500 Jobs Amid Federal Spending Reductions
Trump Signs Executive Orders to Accelerate Nuclear Energy Development
Harvard Temporarily Blocks Trump Administration's International Student Ban
Nippon Steel Forms Partnership with U.S. Steel, Headquarters to Remain in Pittsburgh
Trump Expands Tariff Threats to Apple and Samsung Devices
Oracle and OpenAI Plan $40 Billion Nvidia Chip Purchase for AI Data Center
Trump Threatens 50% Tariff on EU Goods, Markets React
×