WASHINGTON: US regulators have approved an additional generic version of the abortion pill mifepristone in a normally routine move that has angered anti-abortion activists.
Conservative figures and anti-abortion groups have strongly condemned this regulatory decision.
The organization Students for Life Action described the approval as a stain on the Trump presidency.
Drug manufacturer Evita announced on its website that the US Food and Drug Administration approved its generic tablet this week.
This medication is currently approved to terminate pregnancies up to 70 days of gestation.
Mifepristone is used in the majority of abortions performed within the United States.
The drug is also routinely utilized for managing early miscarriage cases.
The FDA originally approved mifepristone for use back in the year 2000.
Another generic version of the medication already exists in the market.
Approvals of additional generics are typically considered routine regulatory procedures.
Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, called the approval reckless and unconscionable.
Senator Josh Hawley, a Republican from Missouri, stated on social media platform X that he had lost confidence in FDA leadership.
Former vice president Mike Pence posted that the decision represented a complete betrayal of the pro-life movement that elected President Trump.
Pence additionally called for the dismissal of Robert F. Kennedy Jr, Trump’s controversial health chief.
This controversy emerges weeks after Kennedy and FDA Commissioner Marty Makary reportedly delivered a letter to 22 Republican attorneys general.
The letter indicated the FDA was conducting a new review of mifepristone’s safety profile.
Abortion rights organizations have characterized this safety review as a blatant attempt to undermine healthcare access.
A coalition of attorneys general from more than a dozen Democratic-led states has vowed to protect the drug’s availability.
The American Medical Association has described the prescription drug as exceedingly safe and effective.
The association stated that restricting access to mifepristone would jeopardize public health.
This position aligns with the views of many leading medical institutions across the country.
Mifepristone functions by preventing pregnancy progression when administered.
The medication is generally used in combination with misoprostol, which empties the uterus. – AFP