Laura Mercer

Laura Mercer.

The U.S. Supreme Court stepped in to protect access to the widely-used abortion pill mifepristone late last week after a federal judge in Texas made the unprecedented decision to impose a nationwide ban on the drug.

The judge ruled the FDA had improperly approved it more than two decades ago. At the same time, a judge in Washington ruled in the opposite way and declared current FDA rules stay in place for mifepristone.

All of this comes after the landmark move by the Supreme Court to strike down Roe v. Wade last summer, which sent abortion rights arguments back to the state level.

Dr. Laura Mercer is chair of the Arizona Section of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologist and a practicing OBGYN in the Phoenix area. KJZZ spoke with her on the rollercoaster abortion providers have been on for the past year.

More stories from KJZZ

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• Health and legal experts: Ruling overturning FDA approval for abortion pill is a worrisome first