Supreme Court rejects abortion pill challenge

What happened

The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected a push by anti-abortion groups to restrict access to the abortion medication mifepristone, ruling unanimously that plaintiffs lacked standing to bring the case.

Who said what

The anti-abortion doctors named as plaintiffs have "sincere legal, moral, ideological and policy objections" to the widely available drug, Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote in the ruling, but their "desire to make a drug less available for others does not establish standing to sue." Thursday's ruling was the "first major abortion issue to come before the court since its 2022 decision overturning Roe v. Wade," The Wall Street Journal said. Rejecting the mifepristone challenge on procedural grounds allowed the justices to find "common ground."

Thursday's ruling is "not a 'win' for abortion," Nancy Northup at the Center for Reproductive Rights said in a statement. It simply "maintains the status quo, which is a dire public health crisis in which 14 states have criminalized abortion." This was a "sad day for all who value women's health and unborn children's lives," Katie Daniel at Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America said to the BBC. But "the fight to stop dangerous mail-order abortion drugs is not over."

What next?

Kavanaugh's ruling held "potentially useful hints for abortion opponents, laying out a path" for similar challenges in the future, Politico said. Anti-abortion leaders anticipate better luck advancing the merits of their case in "litigation Idaho, Kansas and Missouri are pursuing before the same Trump-appointed judge" whose 2023 ruling "would have banned abortion pills nationwide."

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