Supreme Court keeps freeze on abortion pill restrictions

A divided Supreme Court on Thursday indefinitely extended a freeze on strict new restrictions for dispensing the widely used abortion pill mifepristone while an underlying legal fight over the drug plays out.

Why it matters: The widely expected order provides legal certainty for pharmacies, telehealth companies and clinicians caught up in the latest battle over accessing the pill.

• Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas dissented.
• Teleprescribing and mailing of abortion drugs now account for more than 60% of all abortions in the health system.

Driving the news: Alito had issued two earlier stays freezing a ruling by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that would have required patients to see a provider in person before getting the drug.

• Drugmakers Danco Laboratories and GenBioPro had asked the high court to restore access to mifepristone through telehealth prescriptions and mail delivery.
• The case drew a flurry of briefs from Congress, state attorneys general and local governments on both sides of the abortion debate.
• A group of former FDA commissioners and the drug industry lobby PhRMA have also argued the 5th Circuit decision creates serious consequences for the entire drug approval system and opens the door for any state to challenge any FDA decision.

Louisiana brought the underlying case challenging Biden administration rules that expanded access to mifepristone, arguing they undermined its laws protecting unborn human life and caused it to spend Medicaid funds on emergency care for women harmed by mifepristone.

Editor's note: This is a breaking story. Check here for updates.