The Host
Julie Rovner
KFF Health News
Read Julie’s stories.
Julie Rovner is chief Washington correspondent and host of KFF Health News’ weekly health policy news podcast, “What the Health?” A noted expert on health policy issues, Julie is the author of the critically praised reference book “Health Care Politics and Policy A to Z,” now in its third edition.
A divided three-judge federal appeals court panel has ruled that a lower court was wrong to try to reverse entirely the FDA’s approval of the abortion drug mifepristone. The panel found, however, the FDA violated regulatory regulations in making the abortion drug more accessible and those rules should be reversed. In practice, nothing changes immediately, because the Supreme Court has blocked the lower court’s order that the drug effectively be removed from the U.S. market — for now.
The case has a major impact on the future of reproductive healthcare, because the pill is used as part of a routine that is the most popular way for American women to terminate an early pregnancy. It is also widely prescribed by doctors in order to treat miscarriages.
Meanwhile, as President Joe Biden’s Inflation…
