Friday’s U.S. Supreme Court ruling to protect access to the abortion pill mifepristone does not mean the issue is over.
The Supreme Court blocked a decision by a Texas U.S. District Court Judge on April 7 that had invalidated the Food and Drug Administration’s 20-plus-years-long approval of the drug. The medication is used for medical abortions and miscarriages.
The pharmacy industry is weighing in.
One concern for some pharmacists is that if the FDA’s approval process can be challenged for mifepristone, could the FDA face scrutiny on its approval process for other drugs?
Wegmans School of Pharmacy on the campus of St. John Fisher University in Pittsford is one of a handful of pharmacy schools in New York state.
Dr. Angela Nagel is the associate dean for academic affairs.
“All they did was pause the status quo and let everything go back through the appeal process,” Nagel said.
Nagel discussed the ongoing court battle over mifepristone. She says pharmacists follow the FDA guidelines and scientific evidence.
“We really do look to evidence-based medicine,” she said. “So really looking at evidence that the manufacturer puts forward or research that’s out there in the field that’s put forward. We look at how it’s approved, how it’s being used and the risk-benefit. So really just looking at the evidence. And that’s what we talk about with the students in the classroom.”
Future pharmacists learn other options that would be available should a drug of any sort becomes unavailable.
“I think the frustration is how those cases were being processed looking at how the FDA does its job,” Nagel said. “I think that’s part of the frustration because we have a government agency that really functions well and is kind of a gold standard across many realms. And then looking at challenging how it does its day to day is what I would call frustrating. Because then what else is up for debate and for question.”
She reassures residents of New York that the medication is widely available for those who need it.
“There is no shortage of the medication,” she said. “There’s no bans on it currently. Everything is in an appeals state so everything is status quo. It is available for use for patients that require it, whether it’s for a medication abortion or treatment after a miscarriage. It is out there and available. Reach out to your health care provider. If you have questions, reach out to your pharmacist.”
In pharmacy, it’s about sticking to the facts in the classroom and on the job.
“I think some of the students are concerned,” Nagel said. “Kind of from a holistic standpoint from what can I do to help support patients and providers and the biggest things that any of us can do is provide facts.”
Nagel says she would like to see the medication approval process of the FDA upheld.
In the meantime, the next step in the case will be a hearing scheduled for next month in a federal appeals court.