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Abortion access lawsuits overview:
- Who: A group of five women filed a lawsuit against the state of Texas, and 12 Democratic attorneys general and a group of anti-abortion activists filed separate lawsuits against the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
- Why: The lawsuits claim there are allegedly unclear abortion ban exceptions in Texas, restrictions on the FDA-approved abortion drug mifepristone and unlawful FDA approval of abortion drugs.
- Where: The lawsuits were filed in Texas and Washington federal courts.
Lawsuits revolving around abortion access have been filed this month against the state of Texas and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) by five women, 12 Democratic attorneys general and anti-abortion activists.
Abortion-related complaints have increased following the Supreme Court’s June 2022 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in June of last year. The landmark case protected an individual’s constitutional right to an abortion.
Just this month, a group of five women filed a lawsuit against the state of Texas over claims that exceptions to abortion bans in the state are unclear and keep doctors from being willing to perform medically necessary abortions.
The women argue that, because of the alleged uncertainty surrounding state abortion ban exceptions, they were ultimately denied “necessary and potentially life-saving care obstetrical care.”
Medical professionals in Texas, meanwhile, were allegedly unwilling to perform the abortions on due to concerns they would suffer liability by doing so, the Texas abortion lawsuit claims.
“With the threat of losing their medical licenses, fines of hundreds of thousands of dollars,and up to 99 years in prison lingering over their heads, it is no wonder that doctors and hospitals are turning patients away,” the Texas abortion lawsuit states.
Democratic AGs want FDA to drop mifepristone restrictions
Also this month, a dozen Democratic attorneys general filed a lawsuit against the FDA in an attempt to get the agency to drop all remaining restrictions on the abortion drug mifepristone.
The lawsuit is led by the attorneys general from Washington and Oregon, in addition to Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, Rhode Island and Vermont.
The attorneys general have asked a federal court in Washington to declare that mifepristone is safe and effective and that any restrictions remaining on the abortion drug, which has been FDA-approved for more than 22 years, be lifted.
Current restrictions on mifepristone, which is used as a “two-drug medication regimen” with the drug misoprostol, “strictly limit” who is able to prescribe and dispense the medicine.
“FDA’s decision to continue these burdensome restrictions in January 2023 on a drug that has been on the market for more than two decades with only ‘exceedingly rare’ adverse events has no basis in science,” the lawsuit states.
Judge reverses decision to delay abortion drug approval hearing date
In addition to the lawsuit from the attorneys general, the FDA also faces a lawsuit from a group of anti-abortion activists wanting the agency to rescind its approval of abortion drugs like mifepristone and misoprostol.
The Texas federal judge overseeing the case decided earlier this month to reverse a previous decision to delay docketing a hearing for the claims, only hours after a letter from media outlets and reports pushed back on the decision.
The media outlets accused the judge, Matthew J. Kacsmaryk, of trying to keep the hearing date a secret and argued — while disclosing the date themselves — that doing so was a violation of the US Constitution.
“The Court’s delayed docketing of notice of Wednesday’s hearing, and its request to the parties and their counsel not to disclose the hearing schedule publicly, harm everyone, including those who support the plaintiffs’ position and those who support the defendants’ position,” the letter stated.
Kacsmaryk explained that his decision to delay docketing the hearing date was over concerns the case could lead to potentially disruptive protests taking place at the courthouse in Amarillo, Texas.
Do you believe the FDA should drop all restrictions on abortion drugs or, alternatively, rescind its approval of them? Let us know in the comments!
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6 thoughts onWomen, states sue over restrictions on abortion access
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Add me! We will have more orphans, more women dying from lack of healthcare, and more women on welfare!
All that Ban does is make women go underground..
it’s already happening ….
Long-standing abortion medications, like the “day after” pill, should be available without restriction, with full federal approval as safe. Abortion restrictions won’t stop abortions but they will delay them, causing some pregnant to go “underground”, delaying treatment. Putting the mother’s health second to the legally-prioritized fetus negates the hippocratic oath. Women with the most to lose from an unwanted pregnancy are the least likely to have the time (weeks out) & financial means to travel for safe legal out-of-state health care. Men are imposing views on women, something 80% don’t agree with, when nanny-states directly target women and girls, undermining both gender equality and American family autonomy.