Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously decided to preserve access to mifepristone, a medication commonly used for abortion care.
The Court’s decision ensures that the medication abortion pills will continue to be available in the U.S., including from online sources and through the mail, and to states that have severely restricted abortion availability. Mifepristone is the most common method of abortion, used in about two-thirds of pregnancy terminations nationwide.
Before we start celebrating too hard, though, let’s remember that the 9-0 positive outcome was not based on the merits of the case itself, but on legal standing. The Court rightfully ruled that the group of anti-abortion doctors that sued to ban mifepristone had no legal standing to bring the case — that is, they were not harmed by the availability of mifepristone so therefore had no case against it. The merits of the case were not even heard.
It’s only a matter of time before the extreme right finds some person or organization that stands a better chance of bringing the suit against medication abortion to the Supreme Court. The Court’s written decision foreshadows this eventuality.
This is just another reminder that we need to elect Democrats to represent us and our priorities. Let’s play the long game — like the Republicans have been doing so successfully — and start planning now for future judicial confirmations.
