The US Supreme Court, due on Wednesday to rule on the legal puzzle surrounding the fate of the abortion pill in the country, decided to extend full access to it by two days.
The high court said in a short text that it had extended the suspension of a lower court’s decision on the pill for 48 hours, until “11.59pm on Friday 21 April”.
At the center of the legal dispute is the health clearance that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted to mifepristone 23 years ago, used in more than half of the abortions in the country.
Texas federal judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, nominated by former President Donald Trump (2017-2021), ordained April 8the withdrawal of the health authorization for the abortion pill.
The order was challenged by the government of Joe Biden and a Louisiana appeals court ruled that the drug was only available up to the first seven weeks of pregnancy, three fewer than in the past, and that it had to be picked up in person.
But the Justice Department took the case to the Supreme Court arguing that the restriction would have serious consequences for women and for the pharmaceutical industry, for which the high court has temporarily suspended the sentence.
According to the Guttmacher Institute, a non-profit organization that supports abortion rights, 54 percent of pregnancy losses in the United States in 2022 occurred with abortion pills such as mifepristone or misoprostol.
The political and judicial battle over abortion reignited in the United States in June of last year, when the conservative-majority Supreme Court overturned the constitutional law the same at the federal level, leaving the decision in the hands of each state.
Subsequently, dozens of Republican-ruled states restricted this practice.
Planned Parenthood, which supports high-quality, affordable reproductive and medical care in the country, estimates that 18 of the 50 states have since banned or severely restricted abortions, and that in 13 of the 50 states, access to the service is the practice impossible. although there are exceptions.
PB extension
Source: Clarin
Mary Ortiz is a seasoned journalist with a passion for world events. As a writer for News Rebeat, she brings a fresh perspective to the latest global happenings and provides in-depth coverage that offers a deeper understanding of the world around us.