Trump administration urges court to dismiss abortion pill challenge

Catch up quick: The dispute dates back to November 2022 when a group of anti-abortion physicians and medical associations sued the FDA, arguing it didn't have authority to approve or regulate mifepristone as safe and effective.

• They also argued a 19th century anti-obscenity law known as the Comstock Act applies to mailing the drug.
• The case ultimately made it's way to the Supreme Court, which ruled last June the doctors and associations they lacked standing. They did not weigh in on the merits of the case.
• Soon after, Missouri's attorney general revived the state's push against mifepristone in District court.

What they're saying: "Regardless of the merits of the States' claims, the States cannot proceed in this Court," the administration says in the filing.

• "The States' Amended Complaint should be dismissed or transferred for lack of venue."

Between the lines: There have been a lot of question marks about how the Trump administration would treat the abortion pill and this offers a potential reason for optimism, Greer Donley, an associate professor of law at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, told Axios.

• "It's also possible that due to procedural problems with this case, the administration just doesn't want to use it to put their stake in the ground, she said. 

• "Things could change. But filings like this give the impression that maybe they aren't going to be as extreme as people like me feared." 

The big picture: Medication abortions make up most of abortions in the U.S. Polls show the majority of Americans strongly support access to the pills.

• Mifepristone is often used alongside another FDA-approved drug, misoprostol, in the first 10 weeks of pregnancy. Both drugs have an established track record for safety and effectiveness.
• More recently, they've been prescribed through telehealth and shipped directly to patients after the FDA lifted the in-person pickup requirement.