A group of 69 Republican lawmakers are asking a federal appeals court to uphold the injunction issued by a Texas judge last week that would halt the Food and Drug Administration's more than two-decade old approval of the abortion pill mifepristone.
In court documents filed Tuesday, the GOP members of Congress write that they are "committed to protecting women and girls from the harms of the abortion industry." They assert FDA approval of medication abortions, which they call chemical abortions, was "unlawful."
"By approving and deregulating chemical abortion drugs, the FDA has not followed Congress' statutorily prescribed drug approval process and has subverted Congress' critical public policy interests in upholding patient welfare," the Republicans argue. "The FDA's lawless actions ultimately endanger women and girls seeking chemical abortions."
The brief was led by Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, R-Miss., and Rep. August Pfluger, R-Texas. It comes in response to 240 congressional Democrats that asked the 5th Circuit to overturn the injunction.
Last week, in an unprecedented and highly controversial decision, Trump-appointed U.S. District Judge Matthew J. Kacsmaryk issued an injunction against the FDA's approval of mifepristone, a popular drug used in more than half of all abortions in the U.S. The Biden administration quickly filed an appeal to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals.
