FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Thursday, June 13, 2024
Contact:
Julie Hirschhorn
jhirschhorn@aafp.org
Statement attributable to:
Steven P. Furr, MD, FAAFP
President
American Academy of Family Physicians
Today’s decision in the case of Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine (AHM) v. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) preserves the patient-physician relationship and upholds access to mifepristone, an FDA-approved medication.
Patients must be able to depend on their physicians to make critical decisions about their personal health. Physicians must also be able to practice medicine that is informed by their years of medical education, training, experience and available evidence. Regulatory experts must be allowed to ensure the safety and efficacy of drugs without government interference.
We thank the U.S. Supreme Court for recognizing that the health care community relies on agencies such as the FDA to ensure the safety and efficacy of treatments available to patients. Restricting access to certain treatments would set a dangerous precedent of allowing the rigorous drug evaluation process to be circumvented, affecting patients’ access to a medication or regimen.
The AAFP will continue to advocate for everyone’s right to health care and oppose any governmental interference in the confidential relationship between patient and physician.
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About the American Academy of Family Physicians
The AAFP is the largest national association of family physicians, representing 128,300 physicians and medical students. Family medicine’s cornerstone is an ongoing, personal patient-physician relationship focused on impactful care for people of all ages, races and genders across all medical conditions. The AAFP supports every stage of a family physician's career and provides evidence-based resources, advocacy and community to empower family medicine. To learn more, visit aafp.org. For information about health care, medical conditions and wellness, please visit the AAFP’s patient education website, familydoctor.org.