Will Supreme Court abortion pill decision change access to mifepristone in Louisiana?

A Supreme Court decision Thursday to preserve mail-order prescriptions to the widely used abortion pill mifepristone still won't allow Louisiana women to access the drug for abortions.

Louisiana's near total abortion ban makes it illegal to use mifepristone to terminate a pregnancy and illegal to secure the medicine through the mail.

In fact, a bill by Republican Shreveport state Sen. Thomas Pressly signed into law by Republican Gov. Jeff Landry this spring makes Louisiana the first state to classify the drug as a controlled substance that requires prescriptions from doctors to treat conditions other than inducing abortions.

The law carries criminal prison penalties for anyone in possession of mifepristone without a valid prescription, though there is an exception for pregnant women.

Pressly told USA Today Network he doesn't believe his legislation presents a barrier to accessing the medication "for legitimate medical purposes other than abortion."

"Women are endangered by unregulated and unfettered access to illegal abortion pills every day," said Sarah Zagorski of Louisiana Right to Life. "Thankfully, this year the Louisiana Legislature acted prudently in designating these drugs as controlled substances so that people who should not have them can be adequately dealt with under the law."

The unanimous Supreme Court Decision said the anti-abortion doctors who challenged the Federal Drug Administration's loosening of rules for how mifepristone can be prescribed and dispensed lacked a legitimate basis to bring their suit.

Republican Louisiana U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy, a medical doctor who serves as the ranking member of the Senate Health Committee, said he believes the previous "safeguards" for the drug should be reinstated.

“The court did not weigh in on the merits of the case, but the fact remains this is a high-risk drug that ends the life of an unborn child,” Cassidy said in a statement. “I urge FDA to follow the law and reinstate important safeguards.”

The case sent shock waves across the medical and legal worlds last year when a Trump-appointed district judge in Amarillo, Texas, suspended the FDA’s 20-year-old approval of mifepristone. The right-leaning 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in Louisiana restored the FDA's approval but upheld other parts of his decision – setting the stage for a high court showdown that saw strident anti-abortion and abortion rights protesters facing off on the streets outside.

More: Supreme Court preserves access to widely used abortion medication mifepristone

Greg Hilburn covers state politics for the USA TODAY Network of Louisiana. Follow him on Twitter @GregHilburn1.

This article originally appeared on Shreveport Times: Here's what Supreme Court abortion pill ruling means in Louisiana