Court docket Says Louisiana’s Lawsuit In opposition to Mail-Order Abortions is “Likely to Succeed”

A federal judge temporarily halted Louisiana’s lawsuit against the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) seeking to limit access to the dangerous chemical abortion drug Mifepristone’s mail-order availability while the agency completes an ongoing safety review of the drug. While the pause keeps mail dispensing of chemical abortion drugs in place for now, the judge noted that Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill, and Rosalie Markezich, who was coerced by her boyfriend to have an abortion via mail-order pills, have standing to bring the lawsuit. The judge ruled that the state and Markezich “are likely to succeed on the merits” due to the FDA’s “own shortcomings” in loosening the drug’s safety restrictions.

In a 37-page memorandum ruling, U.S. District Judge David C. Joseph of the Western District of Louisiana granted the Trump administration’s request to pause the case pending the FDA’s promised “good faith, evidence-based and expeditious review” of Mifepristone’s safety risks. The ruling temporarily denies Louisiana’s effort to roll back the FDA’s 2023 decision to let Mifepristone be dispensed by mail and telehealth without an in-person medical visit.

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The lawsuit, filed in October 2025, argues that the FDA acted unlawfully under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) by loosening Mifepristone’s safeguards without adequate scientific justification. An April 2025 study from the Ethics and Public Policy Center found that nearly 11 percent of women who take Mifepristone experience serious adverse health events, including “sepsis, infection, hemorrhage, need for blood transfusion, hospitalization, emergency room visits related to the abortion, need for a surgical abortion due to incomplete abortion, and other abortion-specific complications.”

Louisiana contends the FDA failed to consider these cumulative safety effects and relied on missing or compromised data regarding adverse events. Louisiana further argues that the FDA’s actions undermine state abortion laws and impose financial burdens on the state, particularly through Medicaid costs associated with emergency care following chemical abortions.

While declining to issue immediate relief to Louisiana and Markezich, Judge Joseph found they have Article III (federal) standing to bring their claims. The U.S. Supreme Court had previously dismissed another Mifepristone case in 2024 for lack of standing (FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine), but this case is different because the FDA’s Mifepristone Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS), implemented by the Biden administration, undermines Louisiana’s abortion laws, the ruling states.

“[In a] post-Dobbs regulatory environment, there is evidence that the 2023 REMS was approved without adequate consideration, at least in part, as part of an effort to circumvent anti-abortion states’ ability to regulate abortion,” wrote Judge Joseph. “Likewise, there is evidence that the consequences of this action were predictable – out-of-state providers and related entities would expand access to mifepristone in ways designed to reach into jurisdictions like Louisiana. These actions cause concrete and ongoing injury to Louisiana…”

Judge Joseph further wrote that while the FDA has “acknowledged” its own procedural deficiencies regarding its decision-making, the agency should complete its safety review “free from judicial interference,” but should do it with “deliberate speed.”

“…the stay granted to FDA will not remain open-ended,” wrote Judge Joseph. “FDA has an obligation to act with all deliberate speed to review its past actions and complete a thorough analysis that addresses the deficiencies it has acknowledged. The parties and the American public deserve nothing less. Should the agency fail to complete its review and make any necessary revisions to the REMS within a reasonable timeframe, the Court’s analysis – and the weight accorded to these factors – will inevitably change.”

To impose accountability, Judge Joseph ordered the FDA to:

• produce the entire administrative record of Mifepristone’s safety decisions within 60 days.
• file a status report within 6 months.
• notify the court within 14 days after completing its safety review.

Liberty Counsel Founder and Chairman Mat Staver said, “While the ruling keeps harmful chemical abortion drugs available by mail, the judge’s findings on standing and likelihood of success are essential. By finding that Louisiana and Rosalie Markevich have standing and signaling serious concerns with the FDA’s decision-making on the merits, the court ensured that this case will move forward on solid legal footing once the FDA’s review is complete. The FDA’s deregulatory actions regarding abortion drugs are destroying innocent children and harming women. The FDA can no longer be allowed to violate federal law and circumvent state abortion laws by facilitating abortion pill trafficking nationwide through the mail. Chemical abortions are never safe and harm women and kill children.”