Trump Administration files to dismiss mifepristone case because of standing issue
Do states have the right to challenge FDA approval and regulation of mifepristone? Several cases that are currently in the court will determine that.
Most of you have heard that the Trump Administration has asked a district court in Texas to dismiss a lawsuit that challenges the FDA’s authority over the availability of mifepristone.
I managed to track down a PDF of the motion, which I attached below.
In June 2024, the Supreme Court dismissed the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine v. FDA because the plaintiffs lacked standing. Soon thereafter, attorney generals in several anti-abortion states sought to intervene as plaintiffs.
In November 2024, the Justice Department, under Biden, had asked to dismiss the case because it argued that the states lacked standing. The Trump Administration merely continued that line of reasoning.
What hasn’t been reported that much is that there is a similar case, though the plaintiffs are a group of state officials who support abortion rights. Known as State of Washington, Oregon, et al., v. FDA, the lawsuit is a legal challenge to the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) regulations and actions related to mifepristone.
The states of Washington, Oregon, and others are arguing that the FDA's restrictions on mifepristone, including the REMS (Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies), are unlawful and violate the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) and the Constitution. They seek to block the REMS restrictions and ensure continued access to mifepristone.
The same argument could be used to dismiss this lawsuit. If that happened, the fate of mifepristone would be a matter of federal regulation. As Justice Brett Kavanaugh has prescribed, the FDA could relax or tighten rules on any specific drug, including mifepristone.