Mifepristone was approved by the Food and Drug Administration more than two decades ago. Reuters
Mifepristone was approved by the Food and Drug Administration more than two decades ago. Reuters
Mifepristone was approved by the Food and Drug Administration more than two decades ago. Reuters
Mifepristone was approved by the Food and Drug Administration more than two decades ago. Reuters

Abortion pill mifepristone still available in US, but with stricter rules


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The US Justice Department on Thursday said it was seeking an emergency response to new restrictions on the abortion pill mifepristone after a ruling by a federal appeals court.

US Attorney General Merrick Garland said that his department would file an appeal with the Supreme Court seeking to block the entirety of Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk's order, which was issued last Friday in Louisiana.

In a statement, Mr Garland said the administration “will be seeking emergency relief from the Supreme Court to defend the FDA's [Food and Drug Administration's] scientific judgment and protect Americans' access to safe and effective reproductive care”.

A panel of three judges on the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans, in the southern state of Louisiana, ruled 2-1 to keep mifepristone temporarily available in the US but with tighter restrictions.

Under the new order, access to the drug will also require three visits to physicians during the prescription period, and will be limited to women in the first seven weeks of pregnancy, down from 10.

Mifepristone was approved by the FDA more than two decades ago and is used in more than half the abortions carried out annually in the US.

However, Mr Kacsmaryk, an appointee of former Republican president Donald Trump, last Friday overturned the FDA's approval of the drug.

That ruling was paused for a week to allow an appeal, with Wednesday's judgment extending that pause beyond Friday as the FDA had requested.

The appellate court said its ruling would hold until the case was heard in full. Its tightened regulations reverse restrictions the FDA had eased in 2016.

“We are going to continue to fight in the courts,” said White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre to reporters travelling with President Joe Biden in Ireland. “We believe that the law is on our side, and we will prevail.”

Mr Biden has previously branded Mr Kacsmaryk's ruling as “out of bounds”.

The two circuit court judges who voted to tighten restrictions, Kurt Engelhardt and Andrew Oldham, were also both appointed by Mr Trump.

The third, Catharina Haynes, is an appointee of former president George W Bush.

The latest US stand-off over women's reproductive freedom comes almost a year after the conservative-dominated Supreme Court overturned the landmark Roe v Wade ruling that for half a century had enshrined the constitutional right to abortion.

“This lawsuit is the next step to a nationwide abortion ban,” Vice President Kamala Harris said in a statement on Thursday.

“The decision severely limits access to mifepristone, standing between doctors and their patients.”

She added: “President Biden and our administration remain firmly committed to protecting access to medication abortion, as the President and I have made clear since the day of the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs,” referring to Dobbs v Jackson Women's Health Organisation, a 2022 decision in which the court held that the constitution does not confer a right to abortion.

Some are expressing concern that Mr Kacsmaryk's decision endangers the approval of other medications.

“The Fifth Circuit’s decision — just like the district court’s — second-guesses the agency’s medical experts,” Ms Harris said.

“If this decision stands, no medication — from chemotherapy drugs, to asthma medicine, to blood pressure pills, to insulin — would be safe from attacks.”

Shortly after Mr Kacsmaryk's decision on Friday, a judge in Washington state ruled in a separate case that access to mifepristone must be preserved.

The duelling legal opinions, along with the appeals, mean the issue is almost certain to end up before the Supreme Court.

Polls repeatedly show a clear majority of Americans support continued access to safe abortion, but conservative groups seek to limit what had previously been a right enshrined in law.

The Associated Press contributed to this report

Living in...

This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home. 

England Test squad

Ben Stokes (captain), Joe Root, James Anderson, Jonny Bairstow, Stuart Broad, Harry Brook, Zak Crawley, Ben Foakes, Jack Leach, Alex Lees, Craig Overton, Ollie Pope, Matthew Potts

 
The rules on fostering in the UAE

A foster couple or family must:

  • be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
  • not be younger than 25 years old
  • not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
  • be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
  • have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
  • undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
  • A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
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NO OTHER LAND

Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal

Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham

Rating: 3.5/5

THE LIGHT

Director: Tom Tykwer

Starring: Tala Al Deen, Nicolette Krebitz, Lars Eidinger

Rating: 3/5

OPENING FIXTURES

Saturday September 12

Crystal Palace v Southampton

Fulham v Arsenal

Liverpool v Leeds United

Tottenham v Everton

West Brom v Leicester

West Ham  v Newcastle

Monday  September 14

Brighton v Chelsea

Sheffield United v Wolves

To be rescheduled

Burnley v Manchester United

Manchester City v Aston Villa

Recent winners

2002 Giselle Khoury (Colombia)

2004 Nathalie Nasralla (France)

2005 Catherine Abboud (Oceania)

2007 Grace Bijjani  (Mexico)

2008 Carina El-Keddissi (Brazil)

2009 Sara Mansour (Brazil)

2010 Daniella Rahme (Australia)

2011 Maria Farah (Canada)

2012 Cynthia Moukarzel (Kuwait)

2013 Layla Yarak (Australia)              

2014 Lia Saad  (UAE)

2015 Cynthia Farah (Australia)

2016 Yosmely Massaad (Venezuela)

2017 Dima Safi (Ivory Coast)

2018 Rachel Younan (Australia)

Dubai Rugby Sevens, December 5 -7

World Sevens Series Pools

A – Fiji, France, Argentina, Japan

B – United States, Australia, Scotland, Ireland

C – New Zealand, Samoa, Canada, Wales

D – South Africa, England, Spain, Kenya

Mental%20health%20support%20in%20the%20UAE
%3Cp%3E%E2%97%8F%20Estijaba%20helpline%3A%208001717%3Cbr%3E%E2%97%8F%20UAE%20Ministry%20of%20Health%20and%20Prevention%20hotline%3A%20045192519%3Cbr%3E%E2%97%8F%20UAE%20Mental%20health%20support%20line%3A%20800%204673%20(Hope)%3Cbr%3EMore%20information%20at%20hope.hw.gov.ae%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
BMW M5 specs

Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor

Power: 727hp

Torque: 1,000Nm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh650,000

The specs

Engine: 3-litre twin-turbo V6

Power: 400hp

Torque: 475Nm

Transmission: 9-speed automatic

Price: From Dh215,900

On sale: Now

Global state-owned investor ranking by size

1.

United States

2.

China

3.

UAE

4.

Japan

5

Norway

6.

Canada

7.

Singapore

8.

Australia

9.

Saudi Arabia

10.

South Korea

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%3Cp%3E%3Ca%20href%3D%22https%3A%2F%2Fwww.thenationalnews.com%2Fbusiness%2Feconomy%2Fislamic-economy-consumer-spending-to-increase-45-to-3-2tn-by-2024-1.936583%22%20target%3D%22_self%22%3EGlobal%20Islamic%20economy%20to%20grow%203.1%25%20to%20touch%20%242.4%20trillion%20by%202024%3C%2Fa%3E%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Ca%20href%3D%22https%3A%2F%2Fwww.thenationalnews.com%2Fbusiness%2Feconomy%2Fuk-economy-plunges-into-worst-ever-recession-after-record-20-4-contraction-1.1062560%22%20target%3D%22_self%22%3EUK%20economy%20plunges%20into%20worst-ever%20recession%20after%20record%2020.4%25%20contraction%3C%2Fa%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Ca%20href%3D%22https%3A%2F%2Fwww.thenationalnews.com%2Fbusiness%2Feconomy%2Fislamic-economy-consumer-spending-to-increase-45-to-3-2tn-by-2024-1.936583%22%20target%3D%22_self%22%3EIslamic%20economy%20consumer%20spending%20to%20increase%2045%25%20to%20%243.2tn%20by%202024%3C%2Fa%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The five pillars of Islam

1. Fasting

2. Prayer

3. Hajj

4. Shahada

5. Zakat 

How to vote in the UAE

1) Download your ballot https://www.fvap.gov/

2) Take it to the US Embassy

3) Deadline is October 15

4) The embassy will ensure all ballots reach the US in time for the November 3 poll

BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES

Saturday

Borussia Dortmund v Eintracht Frankfurt (5.30pm kick-off UAE)

Bayer Leverkusen v Schalke (5.30pm)

Wolfsburg v Cologne (5.30pm)

Mainz v Arminia Bielefeld (5.30pm)

Augsburg v Hoffenheim (5.30pm)

RB Leipzig v Bayern Munich (8.30pm)

Borussia Monchengladbach v Freiburg (10.30pm)

Sunday

VfB Stuttgart v Werder Bremen  (5.30pm)

Union Berlin v Hertha Berlin (8pm)

The five pillars of Islam
PREMIER LEAGUE FIXTURES

Saturday (UAE kick-off times)

Watford v Leicester City (3.30pm)

Brighton v Arsenal (6pm)

West Ham v Wolves (8.30pm)

Bournemouth v Crystal Palace (10.45pm)

Sunday

Newcastle United v Sheffield United (5pm)

Aston Villa v Chelsea (7.15pm)

Everton v Liverpool (10pm)

Monday

Manchester City v Burnley (11pm)

Our family matters legal consultant

Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais

Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.

The advice provided in our columns does not constitute legal advice and is provided for information only. Readers are encouraged to seek independent legal advice. 

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England v South Africa Test series:

First Test: at Lord's, England won by 211 runs

Second Test: at Trent Bridge, South Africa won by 340 runs

Third Test: at The Oval, July 27-31

Fourth Test: at Old Trafford, August 4-8

Updated: April 13, 2023, 4:50 PM`