The three-judge panel on the federal appeals court stipulated, however, that the drug cannot be sent through the mail, while block some moves the Food and Drug Administration has made to make it easier to access the drug.asked the court to freeze the implementation of the ban
, arguing that too much time had passed since the FDA first approved Mifepristone for abortion opponents to challenge the decision. ”Today’s decision overturns the FDA’s expert judgment, rendered over two decades ago, that mifepristone is safe and effective. The Department will continue to defend the FDA’s decision,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said after Kacsmaryk ruled last Friday.
The Fifth Circuit agreed, but reversed some actions the FDA has taken in recent years. The FDA in 2016, or instance, expanded its approval of mifepristone to be used within 7 weeks of pregnancy to 10 weeks. The court overturned that expansion on Wednesday. The FDA more recently removed an in-person dispensing requirement for the drug, allowing it to be prescribed by tele-health and mailed to users. The court overturned that measure, as well.
The Justice Department is expected to appeal the Fifth Circuit’s ruling to the Supreme Court, and the plaintiffs in the case Kacsmaryk decided on Friday could appeal to keep mifepristone off the market.