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Several Arizona lawmakers are part of a amicus brief in support of abortion pill access

Several Arizona lawmakers have joined  an  amicus brief filed with the U.S. Supreme Court this month in support of mifepristone. The widely-used abortion bill could get stripped of its U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval under a ruling from a federal court in Texas this month. 

The brief is signed by more than 250 members of Congress, including both Sens. Kyrsten Sinema and Mark Kelly, along with Democratic Reps. Raul Grijalva, Greg Stanton and Ruben Gallego. 

It says the Supreme Court should reject the lower court’s ruling, because it threatens to upend the Congressionally mandated drug approval process. They also say restricting mifepristone would pose serious health risks by making abortion more difficult to access. 

"While Congress permitted some judicial review of FDA’s approval decisions, it did not invite federal courts to substitute their judgment for the expert conclusions of FDA’s scientists," the document reads. "Here, FDA’s determination that mifepristone is safe and effective is based on a thorough and comprehensive review process prescribed and overseen by the legislative branch. Since mifepristone’s initial approval in 2000, FDA has repeatedly and consistently affirmed that the medication is safe and effective for its approved conditions of use."

Last week, a federal appeals court declined to invalidate the drug’s FDA approval but agreed to restrictions that would prevent patients from accessing it by mail. The Supreme Court has put a hold on the ruling until Wednesday night. 

Alisa Reznick is a senior field correspondent covering stories across southern Arizona and the borderlands for the Tucson bureau of KJZZ's Fronteras Desk.