Anti-abortion groups at the center of the Texas lawsuit over a widely used abortion pill have urged a federal appeals court to uphold the controversial ruling that jeopardizes access to the medication.
Those groups argued in a new overnight filing that no harm would be done if the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit allows Judge Matthew J. Kacsmaryk’s order invalidating the approval of the law to go into effect. drug mifepristone by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) 23 years ago. The groups had challenged the process by which the drug was originally approved.
Kacsmaryk’s ruling was «meticulously considered,» the plaintiffs in the case argued.
“[T]The order simply removes mifepristone from the mail and from the marketplace,” the plaintiffs’ attorneys wrote. “[A]abortion will continue to be available in states that allow it.»
Mifepristone is part of the standard two-pill regimen for medical abortion. The Biden administration has condemned the ruling, as has a coalition of more than 200 drugmakers.
“If allowed to go into effect, the court order would frustrate the FDA’s scientific judgment and seriously harm women, particularly those for whom mifepristone is a medical or practical necessity,” the Justice Department wrote in a previous presentation. “This damage would be felt across the country, since mifepristone has legal uses in every state. The order would undermine health care systems and the trustworthy interests of companies and medical providers.»
The Department of Justice and Danco Laboratories, the maker of Mifeprex, the brand name for generic mifepristone, now have until Wednesday to respond.
The Department of Justice and Danco have requested that the 5th Circuit issue an «administrative stay» of the Kacsmaryk ruling to allow more time for the legal process to unfold.
The court could rule on that request at any time. Kacsmaryk’s ruling would take effect early Saturday barring court intervention.