The Food and Drug Administration yesterday added a new twist to the escalating fight over medication abortion by allowing pharmacies to offer the pills — even as anti-abortion groups mount a unique legal challenge to the approved use of the drugs….

Medication abortion accounts for over half of abortions in the country. Abortion pills are frequently prescribed online and mailed to patients, effectively providing a way to circumvent state restrictions that took effect after the high court decision — even as 18 states require that a patient take the pills in person.

A Trump-appointed judge as early as next month will decide whether to grant a request to temporarily freeze the FDA’s 2000 approval of mifepristone, which could end nationwide access to the drug.

The move is the latest regulatory gambit to loosen restrictions around mifepristone, which is taken alongside another drug misoprostol during the first 10 weeks of pregnancy and is considered safe and effective by groups like the American Medical Association and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

With the change, the FDA has officially removed mifepristone’s in-person dispensing requirement and allowed for pharmacies to seek certification to offer the medication.

However, pharmacies might still need to comply with the laws of the state they are located in, some of which could restrict the ability to provide such pills….

Full story at Axios