Why the Supreme Court docket’s ruling isn’t the tip of abortion tablet battle

Regardless of how the justices dominated, the abortion tablet battle may nonetheless wind up proper again on the Supreme Court docket.

The Biden administration’s attraction to the fifth U.S. Circuit Court docket of Appeals is scheduled to be heard on Might 17. If the administration loses, the following step is the Supreme Court docket — once more.

“This judicial ping-pong recreation is impacting the accessibility of a protected, efficient, decades-long authorized medicine and is inflicting chaos and confusion,” Carrie Flaxman, senior director, public coverage litigation & legislation at Deliberate Parenthood, stated throughout a current briefing.

Authorized consultants and reproductive rights advocates say the people who find themselves being impacted probably the most are those who reside in states the place abortion is nonetheless authorized.

“That’s the factor that’s sort of ironic concerning the case, proper? It’s filed in Texas, however actually, it doesn’t matter what occurs, it’s not going to have any affect in Texas or any affect within the states that ban abortion, as a result of in these states, folks already are usually not capable of legally entry this drug,” stated Greer Donley, an affiliate professor on the College of Pittsburgh College of Legislation.

Anti-abortion teams are additionally nonetheless plotting methods to assault the drug.

For instance, College students for Life this week filed a citizen petition with the Meals and Drug Administration (FDA) asking that it take mifepristone off the market till it could research whether or not hint quantities of the tablet in wastewater pose any danger to “endangered or threatened species or designated vital habitats.”

The FDA didn’t conduct an environmental research relating to the potential affect mifepristone may have on the nation’s wastewater, the group argued, and underestimated the variety of at-home abortions that will be carried out utilizing mifepristone.

College students for Life argued the excessive variety of folks flushing fetal stays contaminates America’s wastewater system.

The FDA is required to answer any citizen petition inside 180 daysand in the event that they don’t, the petitioner can sue.

The Texas lawsuit that the Biden administration is interesting hinges no less than partly on the company’s alleged failure to answer earlier citizen petitions.