NAF Condemns Court Decision Reinstating In-Person Requirement for Abortion Pill

Statement from Brittany Fonteno, President and CEO of The National Abortion Federation, on the Fifth Circuit’s decision in Louisiana v. FDA: 

“The National Abortion Federation strongly condemns the Fifth Circuit’s decision to reinstate an in-person dispensing requirement for mifepristone nationwide. This ruling is a sweeping and dangerous rollback that disregards the well-established safety and efficacy of the use of mifepristone via telehealth, and will create immediate, medically unnecessary barriers to care for patients across the country.

“Make no mistake: this ruling is not grounded in science or patient safety. It is a politically-driven decision that overrides medical expertise and years of research, and threatens to upend how abortion care is delivered nationwide. Through this litigation, Louisiana seeks to impose its cruel abortion ban across the nation–including in states with legal protections for abortion–and today the court has taken an extreme step toward that end.

“Mifepristone has transformed abortion care for over 25 years, and medication abortion accounts for the majority of abortions in the United States today. For many patients, especially those in rural communities, those with limited financial resources, and those facing an array of other barriers to accessing care, receiving medications by mail is often the only way to safely access the care they need. 

“NAF and our allies will continue to advocate to restore full access to medication abortion. Although mifepristone may not be available through telemedicine, it remains available in doctors’ offices, clinics and hospitals. NAF telemedicine providers will continue to provide evidence-based abortion care at home for their patients.”