FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Wednesday, April 6, 2026
PRESS CONTACT: press@ncjw.org

WASHINGTON, DC — Today, National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW), joined by over 50 diverse faith organizations, filed an amicus brief in the US Supreme Court defending broad access to mifepristone — the medication commonly used for medication abortion and miscarriage care. NCJW filed this brief as the Court decides whether to uphold the recent Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling in Louisiana v. FDA reinstating medically unnecessary in-person dispensing requirements for the medication. In response, NCJW released the following statement:

“The Fifth Circuit’s ruling in Louisiana v. FDA restricting access to mifepristone, a safe and effective medication, is an affront to our Judaism, to the rights of women, and to all of our religious freedom. This is the playbook of the religious right: advancing a dangerous Christian nationalist agenda to impose one set of beliefs on all of us. We will not allow their theology to dictate our health care, deny our access to abortion, or infringe on our own deeply held religious beliefs,” said NCJW CEO Jody Rabhan.  

With so much at stake, NCJW is proud to lead over 50 faith-based organizations and religious denominations in an amicus brief to the US Supreme Court in defense of broad access to mifepristone and asserting that across diverse faiths, we share a common mandate: to protect and promote the health, dignity, and the rights of pregnant people to make their own medical decisions, free from government interference and unnecessary restrictions.

“Since the overturning of Roe v. Wade, we have all seen the devastating impacts of denying people access to the health care they need. Foundational Jewish texts permit — and at times, even require — access to abortion, and call on us to prioritize the health and wellbeing of the pregnant person,” continued Rabhan. “If the Supreme Court does not block this dangerous ruling, it will create an unnecessary and potentially deadly barrier to essential health care — impacting millions around the country and disproportionately harming the most marginalized — including people of color, immigrant, and low-income communities who already face greater barriers to accessing health care. NCJW will never stop fighting until all people — no matter who they are or where they live — get access to the care they need.” 

Since the fall of Roe v. Wade, statewide abortion bans have spread across almost half of the United States. In this landscape, medication abortion and telehealth have become critical lifelines to care. Today, more than two-thirds of abortions in the US are medication abortions, and more than one in four are provided via telemedicine using mifepristone. Despite its decades-long record of safety and effectiveness, abortion opponents are relentlessly targeting this medication. The circuit court ruling is part of a calculated, coordinated strategy to undermine science, restrict access, and control people’s bodies. If allowed to stand, it will disrupt care delivery, deepen inequities, and push essential care further out of reach. 

At NCJW, we know that the fight for reproductive freedom is inseparable from the fight for religious freedom. For more information on the Torah of Reproductive Freedom, visit jewsforabortionaccess.org. 

Read the full amicus brief here.

Organizational Brief Signers: 

• National Council of Jewish Women
• ALEPH: Alliance for Jewish Renewal
• Alliance of Baptists
• Avodah
• Bend the Arc: A Jewish Partnership for Justice
• Catholics for Choice
• Central Conference of American Rabbis
• DignityUSA
• Elluminate
• Faith in Public Life Action
• General Synod of the United Church of Christ
• Hadassah, The Women’s Zionist Organization of America
• Hindus for Human Rights
• Interfaith Alliance
• Interfaith Voices for Reproductive Justice
• Jewish Alliance for Law and Social Action
• Jewish Council for Public Affairs
• Jewish Democratic Council of America 
• Jewish Fertility Foundation
• Jewish Labor Committee
• Jewish Orthodox Feminist Alliance
• Jewish Sacred Aging
• Jewish Women International
• Jews of Color Mishpacha Project
• JQ International
• Kehillat Sankofa
• Keshet
• Men of Reform Judaism
• Metropolitan Community Churches
• Moving Traditions
• Muslim Public Affairs Council
• Muslims for Progressive Values
• National Council of Jewish Women, Greater New Orleans Section
• New Jewish Narrative
• Rabbinical Assembly
• Reconstructing Judaism
• Reconstructionist Rabbinical Association
• Religious Community for Reproductive Choice
• SACReD, a fiscally sponsored project of NEO Philanthropy, Inc
• Sadhana: Coalition of Progressive Hindus
• Society for Humanistic Judaism
• The Sikh Coalition
• The Women’s Rabbinic Network
• T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights
• Union for Reform Judaism
• Unitarian Universalist Association
• Uri L’Tzedek
• Women of Reform Judaism
• Women’s Alliance for Theology, Ethics, and Ritual (WATER)
• Women’s League for Conservative Judaism
• Zioness Movement

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National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW) is a 133-year-old Jewish feminist civil rights organization working for equity and justice for women, children, and families in the United States and Israel. Through the efforts of our 250,000 grassroots advocates and 46 local sections, NCJW combines education, direct service, and advocacy to effect lasting social change at the local, state, and national levels. We approach our work through the intersections of gender, economic, and racial justice to center those most impacted in a uniquely Jewish way. Learn more at NCJW.org and on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.