Congresswoman Bush Statement on Supreme Court Mifepristone Decision
Washington D.C. (June 15, 2024) — Congresswoman Cori Bush (MO-01), a member of the House Judiciary Committee,released the following statement following Thursday’s unanimous Supreme Court case decision in FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, which rejected the lawsuit challenging the FDA’s regulation of the abortion pill Mifepristone.
“Thursday, the Supreme Court rejected anti-abortion extremists' latest attack, and preserved the legality of Mifepristone in states where abortion is currently legal. While this decision wasn’t the worst possible outcome, we must be careful before describing this as anything other than a temporary reprieve of the anti-abortion movement and Republican Party’s long-term agenda to ban abortion nationwide. The Court dismissed this case because the plaintiffs’ arguments about why they should be able to bring this case was so outlandish that even the most extreme Justices didn’t buy it. However, the Court’s ruling left the door open to future attempts to ban Mifepristone.
“This is not surprising. This is the same court that overturned Roe v. Wade. My home state of Missouri became the first state to enact a trigger ban following the disastrous Dobbs decision, gutting Missourians of their right to an abortion which was already largely inaccessible. This near-total ban forced the single remaining abortion clinic in my district to stop providing essential care, and the harm caused by this case still echoes through St. Louis, particularly among our most marginalized communities already facing barriers to healthcare.
“The Court remains as determined as ever to strip our entire country of access to abortion care. This is why I was the first lawmaker following Dobbs to call for the repeal of the Comstock Act, a zombie law that Republicans have signaled they are trying to resurrect to achieve a federal abortion ban without passing it in Congress, and it’s why I will be introducing a repeal bill with my colleagues. This is also why I, alongside Minnesota Senator Tina Smith, proudly introduced the Protecting Access to Medication Abortion Act, which would protect current Food and Drug Administration guidelines for medication abortion to ensure that women can always access medication abortion through telehealth and certified pharmacies, including mail-order pharmacies. It’s a big reason why I am at the forefront of the fight for pushing the Equal Rights Amendment across the finish line, because we have seen in states like Nevada, Pennsylvania and Utah how the ERA has blocked statewide attacks on abortion care. I also continue to advocate for court reform by removing lawless justices, expanding the Court, enacting ethics reform, and instituting term limits.
“The onslaught of attacks on reproductive freedom are deeply personal to me, to my constituents and to the vast majority of people in this country. We must fight back against far-right, anti-abortion extremism and work to build a world where abortion isn’t only legal for everyone, but where it is accessible and equitable for all.”
In April 2023, Congresswoman Bush joined congressional democrats in filing an amicus brief to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in the case of Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine v. FDA, in support of the Biden administration’s appeal of federal district court judge Matthew J. Kacsmaryk’s ruling that suspends the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) more than 20-year-old approval of mifepristone—threatening access to mifepristone for patients nationwide, as well as FDA’s Congressionally-mandated authority and drug approval process.
Congresswoman Bush and Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) introduced the Protecting Access to Medication Abortion Act which would protect current FDA guidelines to medication abortion so that people can always access medication abortion through telehealth and certified pharmacies, including mail-order pharmacies. Last July, Congresswoman Bush, alongside Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett (TX-30), and Congressman Jamie Raskin (MD-08), Ranking Member of the Committee on Oversight and Accountability, hosted a roundtable with advocates, experts and providers on medication abortion access and Republican efforts to impose an abortion ban nationwide.
Congresswoman Bush continues to be a fierce advocate for reproductive rights, and has led and joined several bills in Congress, including the Protect Sexual and Reproductive Health Act, Reproductive Health Care Accessibility Act, Reproductive Health Travel Fund Act, and Abortion Justice Act. Congresswoman Bush also launched the first ever Caucus for the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) in 2023 alongside Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07). Congresswoman Bush introduced a resolutionurging the Archivist of the United States to certify the state ratifications and publish the Equal Rights Amendment in the federal register, cementing it as a formal part of the U.S. Constitution.
Congresswoman Bush is also pushing for judicial reform. Alongside Senators Smith, Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), and Representatives Jerrold Nadler (NY-12), Hank Johnson (GA-04), and Adam Schiff (CA-30), Congresswoman Bush introduced the Judiciary Act, legislation that would expand the Supreme Court by adding four seats to create a 13-Justice bench. Just last month, Congresswoman Bush called for the resignation of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alitoand in April 2023, Congresswoman Bush called for the impeachment of Justice Clarence Thomas after a barrage of ethics scandals.
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