abortion access

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit in New Orleans, May 17, 2023. (Greg LaRose/Louisiana Illuminator)

Three-judge panel in U.S. appeals court hears arguments in abortion pill case

BY: and - May 17, 2023

NEW ORLEANS — A federal appeals court panel quizzed lawyers during oral arguments Wednesday over a Texas judge’s decision that could end access to the abortion pill nationwide. Observers see the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals as a legal way station for the case, in which anti-abortion groups sued the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, […]

In this photo illustration, packages of mifepristone tablets are displayed at a family planning clinic on April 13, 2023, in Rockville, Maryland. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Arguments on landmark abortion pill case to be heard Wednesday in appeals court

BY: - May 16, 2023

WASHINGTON — The lawsuit over access to the abortion pill goes before the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans on Wednesday, the next step on a path that will likely end at the U.S. Supreme Court.  The three-judge panel will decide whether to keep, overturn, or alter a ruling from U.S. District Court […]

In this photo illustration, packages of mifepristone tablets are displayed at a family planning clinic on April 13, 2023, in Rockville, Maryland. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

U.S. Supreme Court preserves access to abortion pill as lawsuit continues

BY: and - April 21, 2023

UPDATED 7 p.m. Central, 4/21/23 WASHINGTON — The abortion pill will remain available throughout the United States while a lawsuit over its approval and use works through the appeals process, the U.S. Supreme Court said Friday. The court issued a stay that ensures access to mifepristone nationwide, reversing lower court rulings about when and how […]

People protest in response to the Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization ruling in front of the U.S. Supreme Court on June 24, 2022, in Washington, D.C. The Court's decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health overturned the landmark 50-year-old Roe v. Wade case and erased a federal right to an abortion. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)

Abortion-rights attorneys help patients and providers navigate legal chaos 

BY: - April 20, 2023

These days Kylee Sunderlin is often the first person people will talk to about needing or wanting to terminate a pregnancy, even though she’s not a nurse or doctor or a loved one. She’s a lawyer.  This is Sunderlin’s third year overseeing a national hotline dedicated to helping people navigate legal questions around abortion in […]

A sign on the Department of Veterans Affairs outpatient clinic in Rapid City. (Seth Tupper/South Dakota Searchlight)

Abortion services to remain available at the VA after close U.S. Senate vote

BY: - April 19, 2023

WASHINGTON — The Department of Veterans Affairs can continue providing service members with access to abortion in cases of life-threatening complications, rape or incest, after the U.S. Senate narrowly blocked a measure Wednesday that would have scrapped a new Biden administration rule. The VA policy, which also includes abortion counseling, was established after the U.S. […]

The U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C. (Seth Tupper/South Dakota Searchlight)

Anti-abortion organizations urge U.S. Supreme Court to keep limits on abortion pill

BY: - April 18, 2023

WASHINGTON — Anti-abortion medical organizations on Tuesday urged the U.S. Supreme Court to maintain a lower court ruling that would push prescribing and administration of the abortion pill back to pre-2016 instructions, ending mail orders, while an ongoing legal case works through the appeals process.  Meanwhile, more members of Congress lined up on either side […]

The U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C. (Seth Tupper/South Dakota Searchlight)

U.S. Supreme Court temporarily blocks limits to abortion pill access

BY: - April 14, 2023

UPDATED 5:25 p.m. Central, 4/14/23 WASHINGTON — U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito has temporarily halted any changes in access to the abortion medication mifepristone from taking effect until Wednesday at midnight.  The one-page order from Alito, issued late Friday afternoon, will block for now the April 7 ruling from the U.S. District Court for […]

(Getty Images)

U.S. Justice Department to ask Supreme Court to reject limits on access to abortion pill

BY: and - April 13, 2023

UPDATED 2 p.m. Central, 4/13/23 WASHINGTON — The U.S. Justice Department announced Thursday it will ask the Supreme Court on an emergency basis to keep access to the abortion medication mifepristone exactly as it is now, amid the appeals process in a much-watched case out of Texas. Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement […]

President Joe Biden delivers remarks in the East Room of the White House on Feb. 24, 2022, in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Biden administration proposes to strengthen patient privacy for those seeking abortions

BY: - April 12, 2023

WASHINGTON — The Biden administration is trying to enhance the federal law that guards patient privacy to further protect those who seek legal abortion care and other reproductive health care services.  The announcement comes amid two major ongoing federal court cases dealing with access to the abortion pill and fears that the pill’s U.S. Food […]

(Getty Images)

Biden administration appeals judge’s ruling ordering abortion pill off U.S. market

BY: - April 7, 2023

UPDATED 9 p.m. Central, 4/7/23 WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Justice launched an appeals process Friday that will likely put a landmark decision about access to medication abortion in front of the Supreme Court.  The notice of appeal was filed less than three hours after a federal judge in Texas revoked the U.S. Food […]

The U.S. Capitol on April 4, 2023. (Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)

As future of abortion pill is weighed, Democrats in Congress see little they can do

BY: - April 5, 2023

WASHINGTON — U.S. Senate Democrats appear lukewarm about pursuing reproductive rights legislation in a divided Congress, even as a federal judge in Texas considers overturning access to abortion pills nationwide. Interviews by States Newsroom with Democrats who control the Senate by a narrow margin found little optimism they could counter a ruling that could potentially […]

COMMENTARY
Gov. Kristi Noem speaks at a January 2022 event in the state Capitol at Pierre. (Twitter/Governor Kristi Noem)

A state that’s ‘pro-birth’ should also be truly ‘pro-life’

BY: - March 26, 2023

No matter where you fit on the political spectrum, the news on June 24, 2022, was staggering: The Supreme Court had overturned Roe v. Wade, the landmark decision that guaranteed women the right to an abortion. Polls indicate that two-thirds of the country saw this as a crippling blow to the rights of women. For […]