Cassidy calls for expedited abortion pill review as primary nears

Source: Roll Call

Posted May 5, 2026 at 8:53pm


Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy, at risk of further distancing himself from President Donald Trump as his primary election draws closer, says the administration isn’t doing enough to restrict access to abortion pills. Cassidy, one of the few remaining Republicans in Congress who voted to convict Trump at his impeachment trial after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, on Tuesday accused the administration of moving too slowly in reviewing the safety of the abortion medication mifepristone. Many expect the review won’t be complete until after the midterm elections in November.

The issue has renewed relevancy, though, as Louisiana is the center of a Supreme Court fight over whether to restrict the ability to obtain mifepristone by mail through telemedicine appointments. That stance is similar to what many other Republicans in Congress are saying, but it takes on special weight for Cassidy ahead of the state’s May 16 primary election in which he trails in several polls. “The FDA must stop dragging its feet and reinstate commonsense safeguards to protect women from abuse and coercion,” Cassidy said Tuesday in response to a question about a court ruling reinstating bans on mail-order abortion pills.

The New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday reinstated a Food and Drug Administration requirement that patients visit medical providers in person to obtain mifepristone rather than by mail through a prescription via telemedicine. In the case brought by Louisiana, a three-judge panel said order-by-mail violates strict state abortion bans. Federal courts rarely step in to limit access to an FDA-approved drug, typically deferring to an agency’s rulemaking.

The Supreme Court, after mifepristone manufacturer Danco Laboratories LLC intervened, on Monday temporarily reinstated a Biden-era rule allowing the pills to be sent by post — setting up a final decision by May 11, just days before Cassidy’s primary. Meanwhile, the Department of Health and Human Services and the FDA last year said they would reexamine whether the agency’s drug safety program is “sufficient” in regulating mifepristone, even as it approved an additional generic form shortly after.

Read more: https://rollcall.com/2026/05/05/cassidy-calls-for-expedited-abortion-pill-review-as-primary-nears/