Attorneys representing abortion clinics in Kansas, Montana, and Virginia asked Ballou to force the FDA to drop Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) regulations that have placed limitations on mifepristone since it was approved 23 years ago. While the lawsuit proceeds, the abortion businesses asked the court to place an injunction against the FDA to prevent further restrictions.
This is a stark contrast to a separate lawsuit that was recently sent back to the 5th Circuit by the US Supreme Court. In Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine v. U.S. Food and Drug Administration, pro-life plaintiffs argued that the FDA unlawfully fast-tracked the approval of mifepristone through a process intended for drugs treating life-threatening illnesses. The FDA has stonewalled official complaints challenging the approval process for over 20 years.
In a third case, District Judge Thomas Rice issued an injunction preventing the FDA from "altering" the availability of mifepristone in 17 pro-abortion states.
Conflicting decisions could result in a need for the Supreme Court to make a ruling.
