Supreme Court temporarily restores nationwide access to abortion pills by mail

In a significant interim order, the Supreme Court restored access to the abortion drug mifepristone, staying a lower-court ruling that imposed fresh restrictions on its distribution. 

Justice Samuel Alito issued an administrative stay, allowing continued dispensing by mail and in pharmacies without mandatory in-person consultations. The order will remain effective for one week while the court considers further submissions.  

Medication abortions, often involving mifepristone and misoprostol, account for a majority of US procedures.

The ruling temporarily preserves the regulatory status quo, while litigation over access, safety, and federal authority continues in lower courts.

The case centers on pandemic-era rules that allowed mifepristone to be prescribed without in-person visits. Louisiana sued over a 2023 FDA decision that allows doctors to prescribe mifepristone without seeing patients face-to-face. A federal appeals court agreed with the state on Friday. Now, two drugmakers, Danco Laboratories and GenBioPro, are asking the Supreme Court to step in.