3 states renew efforts to limit abortion pill access

(The Hill) — Missouri, Kansas and Idaho have renewed their efforts to restrict access to the abortion drug mifepristone, filing a joint amended lawsuit against the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

The lawsuit was filed in a Texas federal court Friday, roughly four months after the Supreme Court decided against undoing changes to the FDA’s regulations on the abortion pill that expanded access — such as allowing it to be mailed without an in-person doctor’s visit.  

In the suit, the states’ attorneys general are requesting the drug’s use to be banned after seven weeks of pregnancy instead of 10 and for federal regulators to require three in-person doctor’s office visits before people can access the drug.

The lawsuit is also challenging the FDA’s approval of generic versions of the drug.

Plaintiffs argue mifepristone is dangerous and is sending women in these states to the emergency room.

Medication abortions require the use of two drugs successively — mifepristone, which stops the pregnancy, and misoprostol, which induces contractions.

The FDA has found the drug safe, as have numerous medical groups, including the Association of American Medical Colleges.

Since the 2022 overturning of Roe v. Wade, the use of medication abortions has increased in the country. In 2020, medication abortions accounted for 53 percent of abortions in the U.S. By 2023, medication abortions made up 63 percent of all abortions, according to the Guttmacher Institute.

Plaintiffs also argue the federal rules around the drug’s use and administration “seek to undermine” state abortion laws and state law enforcement, claiming abortion pills are “flooding” states such as Missouri and Idaho.

Abortion is almost completely banned in both those states, with exceptions for when the life of the mother is in danger.

The FDA declined to comment on the lawsuit.