Washington, D.C. – On Tuesday, March 26, Concerned Women for America (CWA), the nation’s largest public policy organization for women, will join Alliance Defending Freedom and other organizations on the steps of the United States Supreme Court as oral arguments in FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine is heard inside. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is challenging the Fifth Circuit Court’s decision to ban the use and distribution of Mifepristone, the chemical abortion drug.

Mifepristone is used to terminate a pregnancy up to ten weeks. This drug blocks the mother’s natural production of “progesterone” for her child, cutting off blood and nourishment to the baby. The unborn child begins to starve to death. Between 24-48 hours later, the woman takes Misoprostol, which causes the mother to contract and bleed to force the child out of the womb.

“There is nothing safe or effective about women performing their own DIY abortion,” said Penny Nance, CEO and President of CWA, who will be speaking at the rally at 11:20 a.m. “The medical community has had concerns over these drugs for years as the FDA cut corners, ignored safety concerns, fast-tracked, and politicized the process when they have lowered standards for mifepristone.”

The FDA undermined its legal obligation to protect women’s health, safety, and welfare when it approved the abortion drug years ago. The Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine and other groups of doctors and national medical associations challenged the FDA’s removal of safety precautions in 2016 and again in 2021, allowing Mifepristone to be taken up to 10 weeks into pregnancy, instead of seven weeks, prescribed by a medical professional other than a doctor, and mailed directly to patients without an in-person medical consultation in clear violation of federal law.

“The FDA’s reckless disregard for women’s safety in the rushed approval of the abortion drug for political purposes will be exposed,” said Annabelle Rutledge, Executive Vice President of CWA, who will be speaking at the rally at noon on Tuesday. “The untold number of women who will be at risk because the FDA decided to lower the standards and the lack of medical oversight and access to emergency medical assistance can be fatal to young women taking it alone and late in pregnancy.

Please contact comms@cwfa.org for more information or to schedule an interview with Penny Nance or Annabelle Rutledge.