US Supreme Court extends pause on decision narrowing abortion pill access

By Andrew Chung

May 11 (Reuters) - The ‌U.S. Supreme Court ​on Monday ​extended a pause on a ruling that would curb the abortion pill mifepristone from being prescribed through telemedicine and dispensed through the mail in ‌a challenge by a Republican-led Louisiana lawsuit to a federal rule that ⁠had eased access.

Justice Samuel Alito kept the matter on hold until May 14, meaning the pill can ‌continue to be dispensed by mail ‌pending a further order by the court.

The nine justices are considering a request by two manufacturers of the medication to lift a decision by the New Orleans-based 5th ​U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to block a 2023 rule issued by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration during Democratic former President Joe Biden's administration.

The appeals court ⁠ruling on May 1 reinstated an older requirement that patients receive mifepristone only after an in‑person visit with a clinician.

Drugmakers ​Danco Laboratories and GenBioPro appealed the 5th Circuit action restricting access to mifepristone. The Supreme Court in an interim decision on May 4 ​put the 5th Circuit action on hold to ‌give the justices more time to decide how to proceed.

Medication abortion, typically a two-drug regimen consisting of mifepristone followed by misoprostol, accounts for ⁠about two-thirds of U.S. abortions, and any restriction on how the pill is dispensed could significantly reduce access nationwide.

The case has put the contentious issue of abortion back in front of the ⁠justices, with the November midterm congressional elections looming and President Donald Trump's fellow Republicans fighting to retain ​control of Congress.

The Supreme Court in 2024 unanimously rejected a previous attempt by anti-abortion groups and doctors to roll back FDA regulations that had eased access to the drug.

Battles over abortion rights follow ‌the Supreme Court's 2022 ruling that overturned its 1973 Roe v. Wade precedent that legalized abortion nationwide, prompting 13 states to enact ‌near-total bans on the procedure, while several others sharply restrict access.

Louisiana sued the Food and Drug ⁠Administration in 2025 claiming that the ‌2023 rule that eliminated the ​in-person dispensing requirement was illegal and has allowed medication abortions to skyrocket despite the state's near-total ban on abortion.

(Reporting by Andrew Chung; Editing by ‌Howard Goller)

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