Alito Pauses Appeals Court Decision, Keeping Abortion Pill Available via Mail

The Supreme Court temporarily restored access to abortion drugs through the mail on Monday, pausing a ruling by the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals.

The circuit court on Friday temporarily blocked a Food and Drug Administration rule allowing abortion pills to be dispensed through the mail. The court ruled that Louisiana was likely to prevail in its challenge to block women from getting a prescription for the abortion drug mifepristone without an in-person doctor visit, the Associated Press reported.

Justice Samuel Alito, who wrote the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision overturning Roe v. Wade, signed the order temporarily allowing women who want an abortion to obtain the pill through the mail until the court can rule. Alito’s order is effective through May 11, allowing the high court time to further consider the case of Louisiana v. Food and Drug Administration.

In its lawsuit against the FDA, Louisiana asserted that access to mifepristone violates the state’s abortion restrictions. The state also argued that the FDA did not properly consider health risks to women when it allowed mail-order abortion pills.

A three-judge panel of the 5th Circuit on Friday unanimously sided with Louisiana.

“Every abortion facilitated by FDA’s action cancels Louisiana’s ban on medical abortions and undermines its policy that ‘every unborn child is human being from the moment of conception and is, therefore, a legal person,’” Judge Kyle Duncan wrote in the opinion.

Before 2016, an in-person medical visit was required to access the abortion drug. However, the FDA changed its rules in 2016, lifting the in-person requirement for a prescription.

Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill stated Monday, “Big abortion pharma claims they need an emergency stay because they will lose massive amounts of money if they can’t kill more babies quickly and efficiently by mail without medical oversight. The administrative stay is temporary, and I am confident life and the law will win in the end.”

The group Alliance Defending Freedom issued a statement Monday reacting to Alito’s order.

“To be clear: This is NOT a reversal of Friday’s decision. Rather, it’s the run-of-the-mill pause that the Justices typically use to consider the issues raised in an emergency application,” the group stated on X, adding that, together with Murrill, it would file a response with the court by Thursday.

“We respect the Court’s desire to have time to consider the issues and will continue our fight to uphold this victory that protects women and babies across the country from FDA’s unlawful and destructive mail-order abortion-drug scheme,” Alliance Defending Freedom stated.

This story is developing and may be updated.