US EditionUS court blocks mail-order access to abortion drugs, for now
The ruling could sharply limit telehealth abortion access as the judges said Louisiana is likely to win its challenge.
- On Friday, May 1, 2026, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued a temporary stay blocking the Food and Drug Administration's 2023 policy permitting mail-order mifepristone, reinstating nationwide in-person dispensing requirements while Louisiana's legal challenge proceeds.
- Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill sued the FDA, arguing the 2023 rule undermined state abortion bans and caused the state $92,000 in Medicaid costs for emergency care from out-of-state mifepristone complications.
- Circuit Judge Stuart Kyle Duncan wrote that the policy "facilitates nearly 1,000 illegal abortions in Louisiana per month," while the panel ruled federal regulations created an end-run around the state's prohibition where medication now accounts for two-thirds of U.S. abortions.
- Julia Kaye, an American Civil Liberties Union lawyer, warned the ruling will "affect patients' access to abortion and miscarriage care in every state," while Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America celebrated it as a "huge victory" against the "mail-order abortion drug regime."
- Legal experts anticipate a likely appeal to the Supreme Court, while providers prepare contingency plans including efforts to offer alternative misoprostol-only regimens to patients who can no longer access mifepristone via telehealth.
148 Articles
148 Articles
A federal court of appeals in the United States on Friday prohibited the mailing of mifepriston, the pill used in most abortions in the US...
A federal court of appeals in the United States on Friday prohibited the mailing of mifepriston, the pill used in most abortions in the US...
US federal appeals court blocks mail-order abortion pill
A federal appeals court on Friday suspended a Biden-era regulation that allowed the abortion drug mifepristone to be prescribed online and dispensed through the mail, a ruling that immediately halts telemedicine abortion pill prescriptions nationwide while litigation continues. The unanimous three-judge panel of the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit stayed the Food and Drug Administration’s 2023 Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (R…
Federal appeals court blocks mailing of abortion pills in ruling with nationwide effect
5th Circuit federal appeals court blocks mailing of abortion pill mifepristone under FDA rules, restoring in-person prescription requirements, setting up possible SCOTUS battle.
Appeals court blocks mail-order mifepristone, restricting abortion access nationwide
A federal appeals court late Friday blocked the ability of doctors to prescribe the abortion pill mifepristone through telehealth and dispensed through the mail. A three-judge panel on the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals sided with Louisiana in a lawsuit against the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The court issued a temporary nationwide injunction [...]
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