On Thursday, nearly all Senate Republicans urged the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to reconsider if a generic version of the recently approved abortion medication, mifepristone, should still be available.
A letter signed by 51 of the 53 Republican senators was addressed to Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and FDA Commissioner Marty McCulley, increasing the conservative pressure on the Trump administration to limit access to medication abortions.
The only two Republicans not signing were Sens. Susan Collins from Maine and Lisa Murkowski from Alaska.
The senators acknowledged the FDA’s recent move to review the safety of mifepristone, one of the two drugs used in medical abortions.
However, they raised concerns about why the agency would greenlight another generic drug while a safety review is still ongoing.
“While we recognize FDA’s legal responsibility in evaluating drug applications, the timing of this approval appears to be inconsistent with FDA’s prioritization of comprehensive safety reassessments,” the senators stated.
Government representatives defended the approval as a legal necessity that shouldn’t be seen as an endorsement of the drug.
According to them, FDA approvals are based on scientific evaluation and meant to be free from political influences, conducted by experts who engage in detailed discussions with drug manufacturers.
Still, the senators suggested that the FDA should hold off on the approval until the safety review is completed.
“In honor of this important review, and with confidence in your commitment to women’s health, states’ rights, and unborn children, we urge you to decisively reevaluate whether this generic version of mifepristone should be allowed on the market,” they urged.
They called for a halt in the distribution of mifepristone and all its generic forms and requested the reinstatement of in-person dispensing requirements that were lifted by the Biden administration during the COVID-19 pandemic.
With those restrictions now gone, doctors can prescribe mifepristone through telehealth and send it to patients, even those in states with strict abortion bans.
Republicans contended that HHS shouldn’t wait for the completion of the review to take action.
“While a comprehensive review is underway, your agency has all the information it needs to repeal the previous Democratic administration’s abortion drug regulations,” they wrote.
During last year’s campaign, President Trump promised to leave abortion decisions to individual states, but Republican lawmakers and anti-abortion advocates have ramped up pressure following the generic mifepristone approval.
