Governor Healey, 21 Other Governors Urge Supreme Court to Respect Longstanding FDA Authority & Access to Safe Abortion Medication
Boston — Today, Massachusetts Governor Maura T. Healey and 21 Governors who make up the Reproductive Freedom Alliance filed an amicus curiae brief with the Supreme Court in the case of Food and Drug Administration, et al., v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine. The Governors argue that, if the Court allows a recent Fifth Circuit decision to stand, it could undermine their ability to provide adequate health care services in their states and would have far-reaching implications beyond reproductive health care.
“Mifepristone has been used safely for more than two decades and is the gold standard in medication abortion,” said Governor Healey. “We have taken steps to ensure it remains safe, legal and available in Massachusetts, but it is essential that the Supreme Court rejects this attack on women's health and freedom."
Mifepristone is a safe, highly effective, and widely used medication prescribed for medication abortions and miscarriage management – used in well over half of all abortions. This medication is a critical component of the reproductive healthcare system in states where abortion remains legal. Any rollback on access to mifepristone would cause major disruptions to state healthcare systems, further strain providers, and pose serious health risks to millions of women. Ideological extremists shouldn’t be allowed to overrule medical experts and decades of scientific evidence by curtailing access to safe, effective medication.
Furthermore, this lawsuit threatens to upend the federal FDA review process – a time-tested gold standard for rigor and risk mitigation – that Governors rely on to protect the health and well-being of their constituents. If the Court allows this decision to stand, there will be severe consequences for patient access to a wide range of safe and effective medications.
The brief argues:
“...[Governors] rely on the expertise of FDA to determine the safety and effectiveness of drugs and medical devices, including particular indications and conditions for use…Nothing about this framework contemplates a single out-of-state litigant who morally disapproves of a particular drug using out-of-state federal courts to invalidate FDA’s expert judgment nationwide…This strategy, if successful, would have an enormously disruptive impact on state governance and hamstring Governors’ ability to fulfill their mandate of protecting public health and safety—in the reproductive healthcare context and beyond.”
A link to the full amicus brief can be found here.
Last year, in response to the Fifth Circuit decision, Governor Healey took immediate action to protect access to mifepristone in Massachusetts. At her request, the University of Massachusetts and health care providers took action to stockpile doses of mifepristone, and she issued an Executive Order confirming protections for medication abortion under existing state law.
The Reproductive Freedom Alliance is a non-partisan coalition of 22 Governors committed to protecting and expanding reproductive freedom in our states. Members include: Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs, California Governor Gavin Newsom, Colorado Governor Jared Polis, Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont, Delaware Governor John Carney, Guam Governor Leon Guerrero, Hawai'i Governor Josh Green, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, Maine Governor Janet Mills, Maryland Governor Wes Moore, Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham, New York Governor Kathy Hochul, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper, Oregon Governor Tina Kotek, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, Rhode Island Governor Daniel McKee, Washington Governor Jay Inslee, and Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers.
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