CV NEWS FEED // A federal judge on Good Friday stayed the Federal Drug Administration’s (FDA) 2000 approval of the abortion drug mifepristone nationwide in a decision that could prevent a large percentage of abortions.
“[The] Court hereby STAYS the effective date of FDA’s September 28, 2000 Approval of mifepristone and all subsequent challenged actions related to that approval — i.e., the 2016 Changes, the 2019 Generic Approval, and the 2021 Actions,” the ruling from U.S. District Court Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk of the Northern District of Texas stated.
Mifepristone is one of two drugs used together in “medical” abortions. The Guttmacher Institute – Planned Parenthood’s research arm – declared last year that medical abortions now make up the majority of abortions committed in America.
The ruling comes after the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) sued the FDA in November 2022 on behalf of the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, the Catholic Medical Association, and others. The suit before Judge Kacsmaryk argued that the FDA improperly approved the controversial drug, failing to sufficiently assess the dangers it poses to women.
“The judge said that the preliminary injunction would take effect in seven days, allowing for the Biden administration to seek emergency relief,” Axios reported:
Legal experts say drug manufacturers and distributors must immediately cease the sale and shipment of mifepristone for abortion use. Abortion pills are frequently accessed online and mailed to patients, effectively working to circumvent state bans and restrictions that took effect after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.
The ruling represents a massive victory for pro-life advocates, said CatholicVote Communications Director Joshua Mercer.
“In the months leading up to this ruling, abortion groups did everything they could to intimidate Judge Kacsmaryk and paint him as illegitimate in the media,” Mercer said. “And it’s no wonder: This ruling is by far the most significant victory for the pro-life movement since the Supreme Court repealed Roe v. Wade in the case of Dobbs v. Jackson. In fact, one pro-abortion rhetorician put it perfectly: this is ‘bigger than Dobbs.’”
CatholicVote President Brian Burch welcomed the decision as an overdue correction of the FDA. “For decades the FDA has abdicated its solemn duty to protect women and girls, putting politics above health and safety,” Burch said:
The agency’s reckless decision to allow the distribution of mail-order abortion pills without any in-person medical supervision, as well as its failure to study whether this powerful hormone-blocking drug regimen could harm the development of adolescent girls, reveals that pro-abortion ideology not science is its guiding principle. Many peer-reviewed studies and major international studies have documented the grave dangers involved in taking these drugs. It is time to hold the FDA accountable for ignoring the overwhelming body of evidence, and require them to do what is in the best interest of women and girls across the country.
When Kacsmaryk heard arguments in the case in March, ADF Senior Counsel Erik Baptist presented evidence of the FDA’s mishandling of the initial 2000 approval process.
“He argued that the FDA has been putting pregnant mothers in increasingly dangerous situations since 2000 as safeguard after safeguard surrounding chemical abortion has been eradicated,” CatholicVote reported:
According to AP News, Baptist “told the judge that removing mifepristone from the market ‘would restore proper policing power to the states’ — a reference to last summer’s U.S. Supreme Court ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade and left it to states to decide on the legality of abortion.”
Women’s March activists gathered outside the hearing and held a mock “Kangaroo Court,” where speakers jeered at an anonymous source’s report to the Washington Post that Kacsmaryk had delayed putting the hearing on the public calendar “to try to minimize disruptions.”
One speaker at the protest, Women’s March Executive Director Rachel O’Leary Carmona, accused the judge of “unconstitutional” procedure by delaying public notice of the hearing, which she called “premeditated secrecy.” She also called the Amarillo-based federal court “illegitimate.”
Pro-life advocates countered that Kacsmaryk’s alleged concern about “disruptions” would have merit. In the weeks before the Supreme Court’s decision striking down Roe v. Wade, activists staged numerous illegal protests at the private homes of pro-life justices, prompting lawmakers to call for increased armed security for the jurists.
In June, a man armed with a gun, a knife, and burglary tools was arrested near the home of Justice Brett Kavanaugh. The gunman confessed to law enforcement that he had intended to murder the justice, and that he was motivated by Kavanaugh’s reported position in the case that would overturn Roe the following month.
In addition to threats against justices, radicals also launched attacks on Catholic church communities across the country both before and after the high court’s Dobbs decision – a phenomenon that some warn could be repeated in the aftermath of the abortion pill case.
“I wish I didn’t have to say this, but I’d advise Catholics to be on the alert on Easter Sunday. Last year, abortion radicals disrupted Holy Mass on Mothers’ Day, with some talking openly about ‘beating’ innocent Catholics as part of a ‘Revenge’ campaign. And that was before the Supreme Court issued its ruling,” said Mercer:
The radical pro-abortion group Jane’s Revenge in particular are domestic terrorists, and they have a particular hatred for Catholics. We should be proud that they associate us with the innocent children we advocate for – but don’t kid yourself: that means we’re in their crosshairs.