The United States Supreme Court has decided to keep the abortion medicine mifepristone available across the country until 14 May. This temporary decision follows an emergency appeal after a lower court in Louisiana tried to make strict rules on how the medicine is given. Now, mifepristone can still be prescribed by telehealth and sent through the mail during this period.

The lower court wanted to require patients to visit doctors in person and stop mail delivery of the drug. Manufacturers and healthcare providers appealed, saying these limits could harm patient care and change rules that have worked for over twenty years.

Mifepristone is used for more than half of abortions in the USA and was first approved in 2000. The Supreme Court will make a final decision later, which could affect future medicine regulations and the way abortion is managed in different states.