Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes is vowing to fight a judge’s ruling that restricts the abortion pill mifepristone. The ruling by Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk in Texas halts the approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of the drug.
Mayes has also joined a multi-state coalition in filing an amicus brief in the Texas case and has established a Reproductive Rights Unit.
Mayes joined other progressive attorneys general from California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawai’i, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia in the court filing.
Judge Kacsmaryk’s ruling comes in a challenge brought by pro-life groups seeking to revoke the FDA’s approval of mifepristone. On April 7, Judge Kacsmaryk of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, ordered the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to stay its approval of mifepristone, which happened in 2000. The court’s order does not take effect immediately, as the district court put its ruling on hold for seven days to give the federal government and the drug manufacturer an opportunity to appeal.
Attorney General Mayes and the coalition are urging the appeals court to continue to stay the lower court’s decision pending the appeal. The coalition argues that if the lower court decision takes effect, it could drastically curtail abortion access for millions of Americans.