Overview
- Justice Samuel Alito issued the stay Monday, restoring telehealth, mail and pharmacy dispensing of mifepristone nationwide until May 11.
- The Fifth Circuit’s Friday ruling had reinstated an in-person pickup rule across the country in Louisiana’s suit claiming the FDA’s 2023 telehealth policy is unlawful.
- Mifepristone makers Danco Laboratories and GenBioPro filed emergency appeals to keep remote access in place, and Alito directed Louisiana to respond by Thursday.
- Providers and patients saw immediate whiplash over the weekend, with some telehealth services briefly shifting to misoprostol-only regimens that can cause more side effects and are less effective than the two-drug protocol.
- The case carries broad stakes because medication abortions make up most U.S. abortions, the FDA says the drug is safe and effective, the Court rejected a similar 2024 challenge for lack of standing, and states are now pressing fresh challenges that could reshape access.