Did the Trump Admin Just Let Louisiana Stop Mail-Order Abortions?

Did the Trump administration stand aside so pro-life states can stop mail-order abortions?

The Trump administration’s Department of Justice did not file any response brief by Thursday’s Supreme Court deadline in Louisiana’s emergency challenge to federal rules allowing mail-order abortions. The state, along with other prolife states and with support from pro-life groups and lawmakers, wants to stop the mail-order abortion scheme while its overall lawsuit continues in court.

Makers of the abortion pills are fighting that effort and were hoping the Trump administration would support keeping mail-order abortions in place as the lawsuit winds its way through the courts.

The notable silence from Trump officials came one day after Louisiana filed a 58-page brief urging the justices to uphold a U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit order that would stop mail-order abortions.

Conservative researcher Michael New wrote on X that the Department of Justice “failed to file a brief to the Supreme Court by the Thursday deadline” and added, “This might bode well for Louisiana (and pro-lifers).”

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Justice Samuel Alito issued an administrative stay on May 4, keeping mail-order access to the abortion drug available at least until 5 p.m. EDT on Monday, May 11, while directing both Louisiana and the federal government to respond to emergency applications filed by mifepristone manufacturers Danco Laboratories and GenBioPro.

The Department of Justice, representing the Food and Drug Administration, filed nothing by the 5 p.m. Thursday deadline.

As LifeNews reported, Louisiana told the court that out-of-state prescribers, freed from the in-person dispensing requirement, are causing approximately 1,000 illegal abortions in the state each month in violation of its abortion ban to protect moms and babies.

In a 58-page brief filed in the cases Danco Laboratories v. Louisiana and GenBioPro v. Louisiana, state attorneys asked the justices to leave in place a recent ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit reinstating the requirement that mifepristone — the first drug in the two-drug regimen used for most medication abortions — be dispensed in person rather than sent through the mail.

Not only would that save babies from abortions it would help protect women from death or injury – as the abortion pill has killed women and 11% of women who take the drug developed medical problems.

“Although Louisiana law generally prohibits abortion and the dispensing of mifepristone to pregnant women, out-of-state prescribers — freed from the in-person dispensing requirement — are causing approximately 1,000 illegal abortions in Louisiana each month by mailing FDA-approved mifepristone into the state,” the filing states.

Louisiana contends the Biden administration’s policy of allowing telemedicine prescriptions and mail delivery of the drug was part of an effort to undermine the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which overturned the constitutional right to abortion and returned regulation to the states.

“When the Supreme Court was considering the Dobbs case, which overruled Roe vs. Wade and the right to abortion, ‘the Biden Administration was preparing a plan that predictably would undermine that decision,’” the state brief says.

The Trump administration has been conducting its own review of mifepristone’s safety record and had previously asked lower courts to pause the litigation while that review continues. The FDA approved the drug in 2000, but Biden-era changes in 2023 eliminated the in-person visit requirement and allowed mail delivery and pharmacy dispensing. That puts women’s lives and health at risk.

The state also cited financial costs, including more than $17,000 spent investigating three cases involving mailed mifepristone and over $92,000 in Medicaid dollars for emergency room care and hospitalization resulting from just two mifepristone-induced abortions in 2025.

Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill said the 5th Circuit ruling ended what she called a “nightmare” enabled by federal policy.

“The Biden abortion cartel facilitated the deaths of thousands of Louisiana babies (and millions in other states) through illegal mail-order abortion pills,” Murrill said. “Today, that nightmare is over, thanks to the hard work of my office and our friends at Alliance Defending Freedom. I look forward to continuing to defend women and babies as this case continues.”

National Right to Life President Carol Tobias called the 5th Circuit decision “an important step toward restoring common-sense medical safeguards that were recklessly discarded by the Biden administration in the rush to expand abortion pill access.”

A recent analysis of commercial insurance claims involving 865,727 mifepristone prescriptions from 2017 to 2023. It found 94,605 women — nearly 11% — suffered serious complications within 45 days, including hemorrhage in 3.31% of cases, emergency room visits in 4.73%, and sepsis in 0.10%.

Peer-reviewed research found three quarters of ER visits within 30 days after abortion drug use were coded as severe or critical. Two separate, independent studies also found more than 1 in 10 women experience at least one severe adverse event. Complications can include hemorrhaging, infection, sepsis, and even death.

Other issues encompassed infections, transfusions, hospitalizations and life-threatening events like cardiac problems or anaphylaxis. In nearly 3% of cases, the drug failed, requiring surgical follow-up. Multiple women have died from the abortion pill.

A large national poll found 7 in 10 voters want to roll back Biden’s mail-order abortion drug rule and reinstate safeguards like in-person doctor visits.

The FDA approved mifepristone in 2000. The agency later relaxed restrictions, including eliminating the in-person visit requirement that helps protect women’s health, such as in ectopic pregnancy situations.

Louisiana filed suit challenging those changes, arguing they conflict with its laws protecting unborn children.

Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr., who handles emergency applications from the 5th Circuit, issued a temporary stay of the appeals court’s order on May 4, keeping mail-order abortions available at least until May 11.

The Supreme Court is expected to act on Louisiana’s request before the temporary stay expires.