Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey announced his office has filed a lawsuit against the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Department of Health and Human Services for allegedly approving the distribution of chemical abortion pills via mail unlawfully. This legal action follows Bailey’s leadership in a 20-state coalition, cautioning pharmacies that compliance with FDA guidance could violate the law.
Attorney General Bailey stated, “Unelected federal bureaucrats lack the statutory authority to sanction the mailing of these hazardous chemical abortion drugs,” emphasizing the potential risks to women and their unborn children. He expressed pride in spearheading the effort to challenge what he perceives as the FDA’s illegal federal overreach.
The lawsuit contends that the FDA has shirked its duty to safeguard public health by authorizing the use of what Bailey calls “risky, untested” chemical abortion drugs and by neglecting the adverse consequences of such drugs, despite the removal of essential safety measures.
Missouri’s legal challenge requests a preliminary injunction against several FDA actions, including the 2016 reduction of safety measures initially established with the 2000 approval of mifepristone, the 2019 endorsement of generic mifepristone, and the policies from 2021 and 2023 permitting mail delivery of these drugs.
Idaho and Kansas have joined Missouri in this lawsuit, with Missouri urging the court to consolidate this case with a related lawsuit, Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine v. FDA, already in progress.
The full text of the lawsuit is available for review here.
