Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk could revoke the marketing authorization for mifepristone, which has been used for more than 20 years for medical abortions. The decision would apply nationwide.
Article written by
Posted
Reading time : 1 min.
Abortion again under attack in the United States. Less than a year after the Supreme Court overturned the judgment guaranteeing the right to abortion, several associations fear that voluntary termination of pregnancy will be further restricted. A federal judge in Texas must indeed rule on the revocation of the authorization of mifepristone, an abortion pill, granted by the Federal Medicines Agency (FDA). The decision could be announced as early as Friday, February 10, reports the Center for Reproductive Rights*.
In November 2022, the conservative Christian association Alliance Defending Freedom thus attacked the Food and Drug Administrationsaying the agency had “put politics above science when she approved abortion pills in the United States”, reports ABC News*. The anti-abortion movement further assures that mifepristone has “intense side effects”.
A magistrate appointed by Donald Trump
Authorized in 2000 by the FDA, this drug is nevertheless known to be “safe and effective”, points out the Guttmacher Institute*. According to this research institute on reproductive rights, mifepristone is used in 98% of medical abortions performed in the United States, in combination with another molecule. This second drug, misoprostol, can be used alone to end a pregnancy. Home “I don’t know how many clinics would offer this treatment and how many patients would accept it”warns the Guttmacher Institute.
What is certain, however, is that Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk’s ruling would (at least temporarily) prevent the distribution of mifepristone in all 50 US states, including those where abortion is legal. Associations for the defense of the right to abortion take this risk very seriously because this magistrate, appointed by Donald Trump, is known for his conservative positions, recalls ABC News.
While more than 50% of abortions in the United States are now performed by medication, such a decision “would have an even greater impact than the Supreme Court’s decision”, Judge Jenny Ma of the Center for Reproductive Rights. “That would be tantamount to banning the abortion pill nationwide.”
* Links marked with an asterisk refer to content in English.
View comments