Anti-abortion groups and the Trump administration’s FDA are sparring over how quickly federal regulators should move on restrictions to mifepristone, a medication used in many medication-abortion regimens. The tension spilled into court this week after a judge in a case brought by Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill issued a mixed ruling on whether the government should be immediately blocked from allowing telehealth prescriptions for the drug.
The lawsuit and the responses around it reflect a broader post-Roe fight over how state abortion bans can be enforced when pills can be prescribed remotely and sent to patients through mail. Murrill and her allies have said that expanding access through online providers takes “the teeth” out of bans in states that prohibit abortion at all stages, and they asked the court for immediate limits tied to the FDA’s rules.
U.S. District Judge David Joseph, who was nominated to the bench by Trump, declined to grant Murrill’s request to stop telehealth prescriptions to mifepristone while the case proceeds. In the same ruling, Joseph left open the possibility of further action later, ordering that the FDA report to him within six months on the status of its review.
Murrill’s lawsuit targets FDA rules that, in her view, made the pills easier to obtain. The case also includes claims from a woman who says her boyfriend coerced her into taking mifepristone to end a pregnancy, according to reporting on the matter. Murrill, like officials in other states that have brought similar cases, has argued that availability of mifepristone through online providers weakens Louisiana’s ban and related laws in 13 states that bar abortion at all stages with limited exceptions.
Some anti-abortion groups have focused their pressure primarily on the health agency rather than on the Republican president, whose three Supreme Court appointees played a role in the 2022 ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade and paved the way for state bans. Still, activists have criticized what they see as delay by the administration as the FDA completes its work, and some have argued the government could move faster in other ways.
Kristi Hamrick, a spokesperson for Students for Life of America, said, “The stall tactics are beyond frustrating,” adding that the administration could also block the pills from being mailed by changing its interpretation of a 19th century law and enforcing it. Other groups urged a more cautious approach, with National Right to Life’s Madison LaClare saying her organization trusts the administration to review mifepristone and SBA Pro-Life America President Marjorie Dannenfelser saying in a statement that the Trump-Vance administration had “an important opportunity right now to prioritize women’s safety.”
The politics of the dispute, supporters of abortion restrictions said, could also be tied to momentum heading into elections. Family Research Council President Tony Perkins, a former Louisiana lawmaker, applauded Murrill’s step to press forward through appeals, saying people he meets are often “shocked” to learn that the number of abortions has not dropped since the 2022 Supreme Court ruling. Perkins said he expects “bewilderment” to influence political dynamics, including an “enthusiasm gap between the parties,” and he said Republicans do not need “a dampening of enthusiasm in their base.”
Other observers pointed to signs that voters have continued to support keeping abortion available in recent ballot measures. Since Roe was overturned, abortion has been on the ballot directly in 17 states, and voting in 14 of those questions has favored abortion-rights positions, according to reporting cited in the case coverage. Rachel Rebouche, a professor at the University of Texas School of Law who studies abortion, said there seemed to be “an emerging consensus in the country that people don’t want to ban abortion.”
In response to questions from The Associated Press, the FDA said in a Wednesday statement that it is reviewing the safety of mifepristone, “including the collection of robust and timely data, evaluation of data integrity, and implementation of the analyses, validation, and peer-review.” After that work, the agency said, it will decide whether to make changes to the rules governing how the drug can be prescribed.
The FDA said this type of study can take a year or more when conducted by academics, while also stating it is seeking to move faster than that timeline. The spokesperson did not answer questions about when the work began, according to the reporting. Mifepristone has been a political priority for anti-abortion activists and their allies in Congress since Trump returned to office last year, including questions directed to Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. during his January 2025 confirmation hearing.
The case’s legal arguments also intersect with how states enforce their bans when telehealth and shipping routes cross borders. Surveys of abortion providers cited in the reporting suggested that availability through telehealth helps explain why the number of abortions in the U.S. has not declined since Roe’s overturn. At the same time, some Democratic-controlled states have passed “shield laws” meant to protect medical providers who prescribe mifepristone via telehealth and mail the pills to patients in states with bans, with those approaches being tested in civil and criminal cases.
Murrill on Wednesday filed a notice seeking further review at the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, in an effort to force faster action. For now, the judge’s decision keeps the telehealth prescriptions in place as the broader dispute moves forward—while the FDA’s review clock continues to define what changes, if any, will come next.