A federal judge in North Carolina blocked some state restrictions on access to abortion pills but upheld others, giving abortion rights advocates in the state only a partial victory.
Judge Catherine Eagles, an Obama nominee, ruled that state law banning access to abortion medications for home use violated the authority of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Eagles wrote that the state laws “frustrate Congress's goal of establishing a comprehensive regulatory framework in which the FDA establishes conditions for the safe distribution of drug products that do not impose undue burdens on the health care system or patient access.”
The ruling, filed Monday, bars North Carolina from requiring abortion medications to be prescribed and picked up in person and other restrictions on access. It also prevents local prosecutors from charging people for breaking the laws.
The restrictions Eagles enforced include requiring an in-person consultation before receiving a prescription and an ultrasound. She said the FDA had not reviewed and rejected these requirements.
Dr. Amy Bryant, who provides abortion care and is the plaintiff in the case, said in a statement that Eagles' ruling “will enable greater access to safe and effective medication abortion care throughout North Carolina.”
Attorney General Josh Stein (D) chose not to defend the lawsuit, claiming the FDA had already lifted the restrictions. Stein, an abortion rights advocate, is the Democratic nominee for governor.
Stein said the ruling “helps women regain some control over their personal health care decisions.”
The ruling can be appealed by the defendants, the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Leader of the Senate. The Supreme Court will hear a separate case this term involving the abortion pill mifepristone, which could have implications for the North Carolina case.
