The Abortion Pill Fight Isn’t Over. Foes Look to 1873 Obscenity Law
- The Comstock Act prohibits the mailing of ‘lewd materials’
- International groups have pledged to keep mailing mifepristone
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While the US Supreme Court appears poised to keep a widely used abortion pill available for now, some conservative justices signaled an interest in considering whether a 151-year-old indecency law should prevent American women from receiving the drug by mail.
A majority of the court indicated during arguments Tuesday they weren’t convinced a group of conservative doctors had legal standing to oppose Food and Drug Administration approval of mailing doses of mifepristone, a drug now used in more than half of all abortions. But Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito asked about the reach of the Comstock Act, a law passed in 1873 that prohibits mailing of “lewd materials” and drugs used to terminate a pregnancy.