Overview

• On July 15, a three-judge panel of the Fourth Circuit affirmed a lower court’s ruling that West Virginia’s Unborn Child Protection Act overrides federal mifepristone regulations.
• Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson III authored the majority opinion joined by Judge Alston, while Judge Benjamin issued a partial dissent urging broader federal authority.
• The court based its decision on the absence of a clear congressional directive to displace states’ traditional power to regulate abortion following Dobbs.
• GenBioPro, the sole U.S. manufacturer of generic mifepristone, is expected to seek en banc review and could appeal to the Supreme Court.
• The ruling leaves unresolved how FDA-approved mifepristone, used in nearly two-thirds of U.S. abortions, can be accessed in states with strict bans.