Fifth Circuit blocks mail-order mifepristone access; drugmaker appeals to Supreme Court

The Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously ruled Friday to temporarily reinstate an in-person dispensing requirement for mifepristone, blocking a 2023 FDA regulation that had allowed the abortion pill to be prescribed via telehealth and delivered by mail. The ruling stemmed from a lawsuit by Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill challenging the FDA regulation under the Administrative Procedure Act. On Saturday, Danco Laboratories, the maker of mifepristone, filed an emergency application with the Supreme Court to pause the lower court's ruling.