Fifth Circuit Court Hears Abortion Pill Case

A three-judge panel from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit heard oral argument in a case challenging the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) approval of the abortion pill mifepristone. The medication, approved by the FDA in 2000, is part of a two-pill regimen for a medical abortion for pregnancies less than 10 weeks along. This case was first heard in a district court in Texas, where that judge halted the FDA’s approval of the medication citing the agency’s process to approve the pill was improper and therefore unsafe for use. The Biden administration appealed the ruling to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court. They won both appeals to preserve the FDA’s approval and recent changes to expand access to the drug. These are only temporary until the three-judge panel who heard oral argument rules in this case. close