A federal judge has permanently blocked part of an effort to restrict how abortion pills can be administered in North Carolina.
RALEIGH, N.C. — A federal judge has permanently blocked part of an effort to restrict how abortion pills can be administered in North Carolina. Illegally fighting The U.S. Food and Drug Administration now has the authority to enforce the law, but she allowed other state laws to remain in effect, handing doctors who sued only a partial victory.
The injunction issued Monday by U.S. District Judge Katherine Eagles in Greensboro makes permanent her April 30 ruling that some of North Carolina’s medication abortion restrictions were invalidated by a decision by federal drug regulators that they were unnecessary.
Monday’s order means North Carolina cannot require that only doctors prescribe the drugs, that the drugs be provided directly to patients, or that patients must schedule follow-up appointments. It also bars state and local prosecutors, state health officials and other defendants from enforcing such rules or imposing criminal, civil or professional penalties on people who don’t follow the rules.
Congress delegated authority to the FDA to scrutinize the use of mifepristone, which the agency approved in 2000 to use in combination with a second drug, misoprostol, to end a pregnancy. Based on its evaluation of the safe distribution and use of mifepristone, the FDA has expressly determined that restrictions similar to those in North Carolina are no longer necessary, Eagles wrote in April.
Her order appears to mean that, following the FDA’s decision, North Carolina patients can now receive their medication through a pharmacy (through a nurse practitioner or physician assistant, or using telehealth) and take it at home.
But Eagles also supported some of the restrictions at issue, such as requiring a 72-hour in-person consultation, in-person exam or ultrasound before a prescription can be filled. He said these rules were not explicitly reviewed and rejected by the FDA or focused on the practice of medicine and the overall health of patients.
Abortion surgery and This legal challenge was filed In a prepared statement last year, North Carolina’s governor said the permanent injunction would “increase access to safe and effective medication abortion care across North Carolina.”
The restrictions on medical abortion are being challenged 2023 Legislation Enacted by the Republican-majority state legislature, it inherited or expanded many previous abortion restrictions, with one change shortening the time frame for most abortions from after 20 weeks of pregnancy to after 12 weeks.
Tami Fitzgerald, executive director of the conservative North Carolina Values Coalition, said Tuesday that the ruling “decreases the standard of care for women.” She also criticized the order halting states’ requirement to report “non-fatal adverse events” related to mifepristone to the FDA, saying it would hide “dangerous complications and side effects of the abortion pill.”
Attorney General Josh Stein, a Democrat, supports abortion rights and is currently running for governor. Did not defend restrictions in court “This ruling helps ensure that women have some control over their personal health care decisions,” he said in a statement, blaming Republican lawmakers for the illegal provisions.
The offices of House Speaker Tim Moore and Senate Majority Leader Phil Berger, who joined the lawsuit to defend the bill, did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment Tuesday. They may appeal Eagles’ order, which comes as the Supreme Court is seeking to rule on a separate lawsuit brought by anti-abortion doctors. Restricting access to mifepristone That could affect the outcome of the North Carolina case.
