Abortion Pill Access Faces Legal Challengesactive

The court decision curbs access to the drug used in medication abortions, which is currently the most common method for the procedure in the US.

A federal appeals court late Friday blocked the ability of doctors to prescribe the abortion pill mifepristone through telehealth and dispensed through the mail. A three-judge panel on the 5th U. S. Circuit Court of Appeals sided with Louisiana in a lawsuit against the Food and Drug Administration. The court issued a temporary nationwide injunction that…

The abortion pill mifepristone must undergo a safety review by the FDA, the judge said. Louisiana's case seeking to ban its use through telemedicine will proceed after that review. (Image credit: Anna Moneymaker)

Shift seen away from from traveling to states with legal abortion in favor of telehealth and mail-order pills The abortion rate is holding steady in the US despite total and partial bans in some states – largely because of travel across state lines and a significant increase in telehealth appointments, a new report says. US regulatory officials are weighing changes to the ways mifepristone, an abortion medication, may be dispensed, but they have reportedly pushed their review until after the midterm elections, given the widespread support for abortion across the US. Continue reading...