There is fallout on both sides of the abortion debate after a judge in Texas suspended a U.S. government-approved drug used for abortion.
While the ruling doesn’t come as a surprise for some, it still caught many people off guard when it was announced Friday evening on a holiday weekend.
Abortion rights activists say the decision from a U.S. District Court judge further threatens access to abortion.
"They’re just trying to take this to the next level and take it to the Supreme Court and take away rights for so many things," said National Organization for Women (NOW) board member of the Greater Rochester Chapter Kim Pandina.
Pandina says NOW fears the ruling could have far-reaching effects.
U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, an appointment of Donald Trump, issued his decision Friday but ruled it would not take effect for seven days.
His decision came at nearly the same time a separate federal judge in Washington directed U.S. authorities not to make any changes that would restrict access to the drug in at least 17 states where Democrats had sued.
The unprecedented ruling from Texas puts on hold the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of mifepristone, which was cleared for use in the United States in 2000.
It’s the first time a judge suspended longtime FDA approval of a medication despite opposition from the agency and the drug’s manufacturer.
Members of NOW and other groups say they are preparing to fight the decision.
“The decision to halt the FDA’s longstanding approval of mifepristone was clearly misguided and not based on science or medical research,” New York Attorney General Letitia James said in a statement Monday. “Restricting access to a medication that has been proven safe over decades of research harms public health and rights of millions of Americans. So long as I am New York’s Attorney General, every effort to weaken and deny abortion access will be met with the full force of my office.”
Democratic leaders say the decision threatens the health of women nationwide.
“Today’s decision blatantly disregards decades of medical research for politically motivated reasons that will jeopardize the health of millions of people nationwide," New York Attorney General Letitia James said in a statement on Friday. "Restricting access to safe and effective medication is a dangerous attack on reproductive freedom, public health, and scientific integrity."
Anti-abortion groups argue this is a step in the right direction in their efforts to prevent abortions.
The lawsuit in the Texas case was filed by the Alliance Defending Freedom, which was also involved in the Mississippi case that led to Roe v. Wade being overturned. At the core of the lawsuit is the allegation that the FDA’s initial approval of mifepristone was flawed because it did not adequately review its safety risks.
Courts have long deferred to the FDA on issues of drug safety and effectiveness.But the agency’s authority faces new challenges in a post-Roe legal environment in which abortions are banned or unavailable in 14 states, while 16 states have laws specifically targeting abortion medications.
Anti-abortion groups, which are newly encouraged about their ability to further restrict abortion and prevail in court since last’s year’s reversal of Roe v. Wade, embraced the Texas ruling.
“The court’s decision today is a major step forward for women and girls whose health and safety have been jeopardized for decades by the FDA’s rushed, flawed and politicized approval of these dangerous drugs,” said March for Life President Jeanne Mancini.
Meanwhile, abortion providers are working to continue to make sure those seeking abortion have access.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
