Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced this week that the Food and Drug Administration will launch a new review of mifepristone, the widely used abortion medication, in response to pressure from 22 Republican-led states. The move has sparked concern among abortion rights advocates, who warn it could lead to significant nationwide restrictions on the most common method of abortion.
The decision was outlined in a joint letter from Kennedy and FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary to the group of Republican attorneys general who had formally requested a safety reassessment of the drug.
“The concerns you have raised in your letter merit close examination,” the letter stated. “This Administration will ensure that women’s health is properly protected by thoroughly investigating the circumstances under which mifepristone can be safely dispensed.”
Mifepristone, used in combination with misoprostol, accounts for nearly two-thirds of all abortions in the United States, according to the Guttmacher Institute. It is also the primary method of abortion in states where procedural abortions have been banned, facilitated by telehealth services and legal “shield laws” that allow providers in abortion-permitting states to mail the pills across state lines without facing prosecution.
Republican lawmakers and anti-abortion groups have ramped up efforts to restrict access to medication abortion following the U.S. Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade. Central to their campaign is the regulation of mifepristone, an oral pill approved for use within the first 10 weeks of pregnancy. Some GOP leaders have called for narrowing that timeframe or banning its distribution via telemedicine altogether.
Such restrictions would dramatically affect abortion access nationwide, particularly in the 16 states that have already outlawed or severely curtailed abortion services.
A key source cited by both the Republican attorneys general and the Biden administration in their evaluation is a report from the conservative Ethics and Public Policy Center. The organization has historical ties to the Heritage Foundation and was involved in drafting Project 2025, a policy roadmap for conservative governance.
Abortion rights advocates criticized the administration’s response as capitulating to political pressure and jeopardizing a method that has been deemed safe and effective for over two decades.
“This is not just a regulatory review — it’s a potential gateway to sweeping rollbacks on abortion access in post-Roe America,” said Rebecca Martinez, legal director of the Reproductive Health Law Center. “Telehealth and medication abortion have become essential lifelines, especially for women in states with bans.”
The FDA has not yet specified the scope or timeline of the new review. A restriction on telehealth prescribing or a shortened usage window could effectively reduce abortion access across the country, regardless of individual state laws.
The administration’s announcement comes amid broader legal and political battles over reproductive rights and follows ongoing litigation over mifepristone access that may ultimately be decided by the U.S. Supreme Court.
As the debate intensifies, both sides are preparing for what could be a defining battle over reproductive health policy in the lead-up to the 2026 midterm elections.
