US federal court upholds limits on abortion drug mifepristone

A US federal appeals court has ruled that the abortion drug mifepristone could remain available with restrictions, but the decision cannot take effect until—or if—the Supreme Court rules on the issue.1 On 26 April the Supreme Court ruled that mifepristone would remain available until the issue was decided by the courts.

Mifepristone, together with misoprostol, is used in more than half of all US abortions.

The right to an abortion was overturned by the Supreme Court in June 2022 in a decision referred to as Dobbs. Abortion had been legal in the US for nearly 50 years, but the Supreme Court turned abortion decisions over to the states, about half of which have banned or …