Sep 1, 2026, 4:15 PM ET

Abortion pill lawsuit delayed again, until as late as December

A lawsuit seeking to revoke the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) original approval of the abortion pill has been delayed a second time, until either December 1 or the FDA finishes its review of the drug — whichever is sooner.

Key Takeaways:

A federal judge has again delayed a lawsuit seeking to revoke the FDA's original approval of the abortion pill mifepristone in 2000.
In the same ruling, the judge denied a motion to dismiss the case from a mifepristone distributor and a manufacturer.
The lawsuit will resume on December 1 or when the FDA completes its safety review of the abortion pill drug mifepristone — whichever comes first.

The Details:

On Sunday, federal Judge Reed O'Connor of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas approved the Department of Justice's (DOJ) request to delay a lawsuit filed in March by the states of Texas and Florida. Both states' attorneys general, who filed the lawsuit, agreed to the delay.

The lawsuit will resume on December 1 or when the FDA completes its safety review of the abortion pill drug mifepristone — whichever comes first.

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In the same ruling, O'Connor denied a motion from mifepristone manufacturers Danco Laboratories and GenBioPro to dismiss the case.

Mifepristone will remain accessible via the mail and online during the stay.

The Backstory:

Texas and Florida filed the lawsuit in 2025, arguing that "the FDA's approval and deregulation of abortion drugs have placed women and girls in harm's way."

The states also argue that "inadequate adverse event reporting" has led to the undercounting of "true rates of risks associated with chemical abortion drugs," meaning that the risks are "therefore... unknown."

The lawsuit seeks to revoke the FDA's initial approval of mifepristone in 2000 as well as the rollbacks of safety rules in place on the drug.

In a separate lawsuit, State of Louisiana v. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the FDA admitted that "if the Secretary of Health and Human Services finds that a drug presents "an imminent hazard to the public health,” the Secretary may suspend the approval of the application "immediately...."

The Bottom Line:

The promised safety review of mifepristone came under fire last year for its slow pace.

Pro-life medical associations and legal experts have warned that continuing to delay the reviews threatens public trust and leaves women without the safety information they deserve in order to give their true informed consent.

The delaying of the lawsuit also contributes to this lack of disclosure.

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