Appeals court order undermines evidence-based decisions by the FDA
April 13, 2023
Statement is attributable to:
President, American Medical Association
“Last night’s decision from the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals is a profoundly dangerous step backwards on access to mifepristone. The appeals court elevated speculative pseudoscience over data and evidence, arbitrarily rolling back access to a safe and effective drug and leaving millions of women without a critical medication for reproductive health care. The AMA fully supports the Department of Justice’s request for emergency relief from the U.S. Supreme Court and will continue fighting to prioritize evidence-based decisions that maintain access to mifepristone.
“Judges and lawmakers should not be substituting their own opinion for the experience, expertise, and authority of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Nor should they ignore the substantial weight of scientific evidence from hundreds of studies and millions of patients confirming the safety and effectiveness of mifepristone, which has been used for decades in both medication abortion and miscarriage management. The appellate court order, if allowed to stand, creates more barriers to care, harms patients and physicians, and exacerbates the maternal mortality crisis, especially for historically marginalized communities. It also opens a pandora’s box for similar politically motivated, unscientific attacks by judges with no medical or scientific training against the FDA’s scientific, evidence-based approvals of countless other medications.”
