Samuel Alito halts appeals court ruling blocking mail-order abortion pills

Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito temporarily blocked on Monday an appeals court's ruling that barred abortion pills from being sold online and transported to patients via mail.

A pair of drugmakers that offer mifepristone, the abortion pill at the center of the litigation, had urged the Supreme Court to halt the Friday ruling from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit, which had restored an in-person screening requirement for access to the abortion pill, by claiming the ruling had created "nationwide chaos." Alito, the justice who handles emergency appeals from the 5th Circuit, granted an administrative stay, halting the lower court ruling through 5 p.m. on May 11 while the full Supreme Court considers the emergency petitions.