US judge pauses Louisiana's challenge to FDA abortion drug rule
Source: Reuters
April 7, 2026 4:45 PM EDT Updated 2 hours ago
April 7 (Reuters) - A federal judge on Tuesday put on hold the state of Louisiana's lawsuit seeking to limit access to the abortion pill mifepristone nationwide while President Donald Trump's administration conducts a review of the drug's safety.
U.S. District Judge David Joseph in Lafayette, Louisiana, said the Republican-led state's challenge to a 2023 rule allowing mifepristone to be dispensed through the mail should not proceed until the U.S. Food and Drug Administration decides whether it will repeal the regulation. "At this juncture, it is the completion of FDA’s promised good faith, evidence-based, and expeditious review [and] not 'government by lawsuit' that this Court finds to be in the public interest," wrote Joseph, a Trump appointee.
The state had asked the judge to block the 2023 rule pending the outcome of its lawsuit, which Joseph denied. But he said the state could renew its bid when the case resumes and that he would likely grant it. The judge said that the New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals had already ruled three years ago that previous FDA rules easing access to mifepristone were unlawful. The U.S. Supreme Court later said that the plaintiffs in that case lacked legal standing to challenge the rules, but did not address the merits.
The FDA launched a review of mifepristone, which it first approved in 2000 and is now used in 60% of U.S. abortions, last year. The review has reportedly been delayed until after the November midterm elections. Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill, a Republican, said in a statement that her office would appeal Joseph's decision and ask the 5th Circuit to block the 2023 rule.
Read more: https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/us-judge-pauses-louisianas-challenge-fda-abortion-drug-rule-2026-04-07/
Link to ORDER (PDF) - https://tmsnrt.rs/3PUYOAF
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