Mailing of Abortion Medication

The U.S. Department of Justice Office of Legal Counsel issued a legal opinion on December 23, 2022, in response to the U.S. Postal Service asking whether 18 U.S. Code Section 1461, which prohibits “mailing obscene or crime-inciting matter…where the sender lacks the intent that the recipient of the drugs will use them unlawfully” prohibits the mailing of mifepristone and misoprostol. According to the Office of Legal Counsel, given the many lawful uses of mifepristone and misoprostol, mailing such pharmaceuticals is not a violation of the Comstock Act even if it is mailed to a jurisdiction that significantly restricts abortion. See, https://www.justice.gov/olc/opinion/file/1560596/download