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Mayes joins lawsuit challenging federal regulation of abortion drug

Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes smiles before a debate against Republican Abraham Hamadeh on Sept. 28, 2022.
AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File

Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes has joined a multistate federal lawsuit against the Food and Drug Administration.

It accuses the FDA of creating excessively burdensome regulations for mifepristone, one of the two drugs used for medication abortions.

It’s been used for more than two decades, and Mayes says there’s ample evidence that the drug is safe.

But the FDA regulates the drug using the same regulations used for dangerous drugs like the synthetic opioid fentanyl, which Mayes calls unduly burdensome.

The attorney general says Mifepristone allows patients to make their own private medical decisions without interference.

She also filed a preliminary injunction asking the court to halt enforcement of the FDA’s restrictions on the drug while the case proceeds.

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