What to know about the Texas abortion pill ruling, its impact on access

A federal judge in Texas is likely to rule soon in a case that could halt distribution of a key abortion drug — a decision that would have sweeping implications for abortion access across the country, including in Democratic-led states where abortion rights are protected.

The lawsuit, filed by several antiabortion groups and doctors against the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, aims to undo the decades-old government approval of mifepristone, one of the two drugs used in a medication abortion.

If the judge in the case, Matthew Kacsmaryk of the Northern District of Texas, sides with antiabortion groups, abortion rights advocates say, the implications would be “catastrophic” — imposing the furthest-reaching limit on abortion access since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June.