(FixThisNation.com) – On Wednesday, a federal judge in Texas held a hearing in a lawsuit that would decide whether the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of the pills that induce medical abortions should be taken off the market completely.
The lawsuit was filed by a coalition of anti-abortion groups, called the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine. The group has also requested a preliminary injunction that would block one of the drugs, mifepristone, from being available in the market while the case was being processed.
Wednesday’s hearing which began at 9 a.m. local time was focused on this case. However, it is not yet clear how long it will take U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk to rule on the case.
According to recent statistics over half of pregnancy terminations in the U.S. are completely through medication. With access to mifepristone blocked, then those who want to get an abortion would be limited to either seeking a surgical procedure or following a different medication regimen which would include misoprostol, off-label on its own.
The lawsuit was brought forth in November and it alleged that the FDA has not taken the necessary evaluation measures before approving mifepristone’s safety. The drug entered the market in 2000. The group of women also claimed that during the recent pandemic, the drug should not have been made available through telehealth.
The Biden administration has maintained that the group does not have the necessary legal standing to bring forth the case. There is also little legal precedent for the court to overturn FDA approval that was given so long before.
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